Child of the Moon
by Shadowalker Nightstalker
Summary: She had a dark secret. Burdened with a power that would make her a target, as well as drive her insane eventually, she hid it all behind a mask of indifference. Then she found a home and friends. They saved her, and she would always be indebted to them... shuddup i suck at summaries i know... rated T cause i forget and I'm paranoid
1. Child of the Moon

**Author Note:**

**YO~ this was ORIGINALLY posted onto my DeviantArt account but i decided to post here, since i've done A LOT of editing to this piece  
>so... yeah... <strong>

_'Thoughts'  
><em>_~Dreams~_  
><em><strong>'Other<strong>** people's thoughts, when in Tsukiko's head'**__  
><em>**Demonic** **Voice**  
><span>Things that are written<br>"Normal Talking"  
><strong>"Demon Talking"<strong>

* * *

><p>The injuries she had sustained in that fight were worse than he originally thought. Her body moved sluggishly through the forest, and was feeling heavy. He needed to find a village or house soon or she could die, and that wouldn't be good for him. There was something up ahead... the sound of many heart beats reached him and the smell of lifeblood filled his nose. Harrumph, it was a rather big village but it would have to do. Stumbling through the gates he could feel the legs beginning to feel rubbery. Damn he wasn't going to make it to the hospital. He turned into the nearest shop and smelt the repulsive smell of ramen. How humans could eat this stuff he had no idea. Well there were people inside and they are bound to notice the young girl standing in the doorway bleeding. Now he could go back to the depths of her mind and sleep. To make sure his sleep was uninterrupted, he would take THAT power with him...<p>

The world was bleary, everything felt so disorientated. Where was she? Why on earth was it so bright? As the world focused she saw an older man making something that smelled delicious. She tried to step forward but was far to tired. A small blonde boy was busy scoffing down what appeared to be his fifth bowl. "Hey! Welcome to Ichiraku's! What will it..." Everything spun and she dropped, slipping away into oblivion...

* * *

><p><em>~Blood. There was blood everywhere. The smell filled her nostrils, causing something inside her to stir.<em>  
><em>"Looks like it failed, kill the brat." A tall man covered by the shadows turned and walked away and two nasty looking men took his place. The men slowly closed in on her pulling kunai out as they did, a twisted grin creeping on their scarred faces.<em>  
><em>"kukuku, this is gonna be fun hey Susumu?"<em>  
><em>"Yes Takeshi, hmhmhmhm how shall we toy with this one? Slowly bleed her or cut her open and remove her innards while she still breathes? So many ways to kill her!" The taller one had a dark sinister smirk on his face as he approached her.<em>  
><em>"No leave me alone!" She threw her hands out in front of her, slapping Takeshi as he drew close.<em>  
><em>"Why you little! I'm gonna smash your brains out across the ground!" The man dropped his kunai and grabbed a nearby hammer, lifting it over his head and bringing it down on the girl's left arm with a sickening crunch<em>.~

She screamed loudly sitting up and clutching her left arm.  
>"Whoa slow down there its OK! I'm here now, just breath," A hand touched her shoulder and she screamed, pulling away, jumping off the bed and backing into a corner in the room. The person who had touched her was a pretty lady with a nurse outfit on and short brown hair and dark eyes filled with concern. "Please relax! It's OK, my name is Suzume. What's yours?" she held her hands out in front of her palms up.<br>"T-Tsukiko" Tsukiko pressed herself up against the wall as Suzume approached.  
>"What a lovely name! Tsukiko, please could you tell me how you broke your arm? It was a terrible break. What happened to you?" Suzume put a gentle hand on Tsukiko's right arm. Tsukiko flinched but tolerated the contact.<br>"I-I don't kn-know, w-where a-am I?"  
>"You're in Konoha Hospital"<br>"How did I get here?" After the initial shock she felt her heart rate slow down and her breathing became easier. '_Questions... I can do questions... Just keep asking questions...'_  
>"Teuchi brought you here. He found you in his Ramen Shop floor barely alive."<br>"How did I get there?"  
>"You don't remember? No one really knows. You were just there. The ANBU were hoping you might be able to tell them more," Suzume looked concerned.<br>"No I don't" Tsukiko could feel the world begin to spin again as she felt faint. "Why is it so loud in here?" There was a loud clamor of noise as hundreds of voices assailed her.  
>"What do you mean? Tsukiko? Tsukiko are you alright? Tsukiko!" Tsukiko dropped again under the weight of exhaustion. Suzume caught the small girl and realized she was just tired. "Poor thing. Maybe she'll remember when she's had more rest," Suzume carried the limp form to the bed and tucked her in gently and left the room to tend to her other patients...<p>

* * *

><p>As she slept, she slowly became more and more aware of the world around her. Voices at first, whispers at the edge of her awareness. She could hear the dark thoughts of the bereft, the forlorn thoughts of the dying. Pain, love, horror and other emotions swirled and turned dark, as something bright and warm approached her. Her eyes fluttered open as she sensed the warmth outside her door. The door opened slowly, and she sat up carefully, curious about this warmth, but cautious. A small boy, with hair like sunshine and cerulean blue eyes peeked in. Darkness swirled around him, even though he was the bright light she could sense. '<em>Why? Why is there so much hatred dogging his steps?'<em> She carefully shifted her position so that she could make a run if she needed to.  
>"Um... Hi." The boy fidgeted. Tsukiko cautiously waved him in. He stepped through the doorway. "My name is Uzumaki Naruto, what's yours?" He bravely ignored the glares, but his thoughts rushed her unbidden. <em><strong>'<strong>__**Why? Why are they looking at me with those eyes? What did I do to deserve this!?'**_  
>"Tsukiko." She murmured, shifting towards him.<br>"Well.. um... It's good to see you're getting better!" He said, grinning. "So...uh..Bye!" He hurriedly turned and fled, people making space for him as he rushed by.  
><strong><em>'It's HIM again,'<em>** She could hear, the words echoing around him. _'__Who was he?'_  
>"Tsukiko, you're up! How are you feeling?" A nurse came in, smiling brightly. <em><strong>'<strong>_**_HE was in here.'_**  
>"Why do you treat him like that?"<br>"Huh? What do you mean?" The nurse looked confused, her smile faltering.  
>"Why do you all hate that boy? What has he done?" Tsukiko frowned, confused at the reaction she was causing.<br>"He's-um well he's- that's top secret Leaf business only!" The nurse stormed out slamming the door behind her. Tsukiko flinched. Why was everyone acting like he was some kind of monster?  
>The voices began to get louder, clamoring for attention, drumming away inside her skull.<br>_'I wish they would stop! I wish they would all be quiet! I wish they'd leave me alone!' _Tsukiko threw her hands over her ears and squeezed her eyes shut. She sat there, writhing in agony for what felt like hours.  
>"Quick make way! It's an emergency!" The voice struck her and she could hear the frantic attitude that suddenly took over the footsteps that echoed madly around her. But it was the smell that caught her.<br>Blood. Again there was that stirring feeling in her gut.  
><strong>"Hmmm, that smell is so sweet,"<strong> A deep voice that dripped with malice woke her from her trance.  
>"Who's there?" Tsukiko looked around wildly, the pain and noise subsiding slightly. The room was completely empty, save for her. "Where are you?" Just as quietly and as smoothly as the voice and feeling had come, they left, leaving Tsukiko feeling scared and uncertain. Then she saw something on the side table that caught her eye. She moved over to it and picked up the small piece of jewelry with her good hand and looked at it. It was circular in shape with a crescent moon in the circle. It glittered faintly and had a familiar feel to it. Tsukiko climbed out of bed and walked over to the window, just as the sun set completely. She saw the moon gleaming outside her window, fresh and silver. It was a full moon, like the circle. Tsukiko held it up and marveled at how the light danced on it. She then noticed the small writing on the back.<br>Fear is only as deep as the mind allows.  
>Tsukiko smiled. Now she understood. She was aware of the thoughts of others because she feared their motives. Her mind reached out to other minds, causing the loud clamor, as she tried to discern friend from foe. Perhaps this power could be suppressed, controlled. Tsukiko focused her will on silence, and slowly, one by one the voices became still. Tsukiko sighed and walked back to the bed. Sliding under the covers she gripped the amulet and held it close, slipping off to sleep, hoping for a more peaceful rest...<p> 


	2. Stormy Meeting

**AUTHOR NOTE:** These might start out quick fire uploads, but thats only because i'm rewriting the original and reposting it here. Just to clarify, this IS _my_ story, I just decided kid me had some really wild ideas that needed to be thought through

hence, the editting/rewritting

i might do it again sometime...  
>Tsuki-chan: She's right, she does this all the time<br>Me: Shut up...  
>Tsuki-chan: Don't you have another story you should be working on?<br>Kaida: Like mine :(  
>Me: *sweatdrop* I'll get round to it...<p>

BACK TO THE STORY~  
>I own Tsukiko...<br>Not any other Naruto related Characters though... thems be someone elses...sadly

_'Thoughts'  
><em>_~Dreams/flashbacks~_  
><em><strong>'Other<strong>** people's thoughts, when in Tsukiko's head'**__  
><em>**Demonic** **Voice**  
>Things that are written<br>"Normal Talking"  
><strong>"Demon Talking"<strong>

* * *

><p>It wasn't long before she attracted the attention of the Hokage. He came and spoke with her a while, and dispite her cautious and standoffish nature, he had her relaxed and laughing before long. She was a warm, friendly sort. Naruto frequently snuck in, and would come talk with her. She began to see the small blonde as someone she had to protect, and as the weeks of healing went by, she began to call him, "Naru-chan" much to his charign. In an attempt to get her back, he began to call her Nee-san. But this only made her smile, and he decided he didn't mind anymore. When she was eventually released from hospital, the Hokage arranged an apartment for her, which she accepted gratefully. One morning, she opted to go out for a walk, to explore this place she had begun to call home. As she walked, she was slightly overwhelmed by the sights and sounds, and was forced to close her mind to the barrage of thoughts that assailed her mind. When she reached a quieter area, she cautiously opened her mind, and was met with a different kind of mind. <em><strong>'<strong>__**Itachi is doing well. He does the Uchiha Clan proud!'**_  
>Bored with the vain thoughts she closed her mind off to those thoughts and wandered aimlessly. As she walked past the Academy, a small raven-haired boy ran into her, causing both to fall over, landing on their bottoms.<br>"Ouch." Tsukiko muttered, rubbing her lower back. "That hurt."  
>"Ahh! Sorry!" She looked up to see a small boy scramble to his feet then try to help her up. She smiled and got up, patting the dirt off her butt.<br>"It's alright. No harm done." She smiled gently to the boy who sighed in relief before panicking.  
>"Itachi-niisan is going to leave without me!" He cried running off again. "Sorry again! Bye!"<br>"Um..." He was gone. "Bye?" Shaking her head, she wandered off to explore the rest of the village.

* * *

><p>She wandered around, as the day dragged on, eventually finding herself at the base of a cliff. The sky began to darken, oddly since the sun was still a few hours from setting completely. Looking up, she noticed the clouds gathering, dark and ominous.<br>_'Looks like a storm is on its way...'_  
>Something glittering caught her attention, and curious, she climbed up a little to the spot, where a kunai revealed itself. Curious, she reached for it.<p>

_~A kunai flashed before her eyes, blood coating the edges. The metallic smell made her gag. The kunai flashed, and pain shot through her arms.~_

Gasping, she wrenched her hand away, rubbing her stinging arms. _'__The heck was that!?'_ She took several calming breaths, and blinked as a fat water droplet hit her noes. Looking up, she blinked in surprise at how quickly the clouds had gathered.  
>"Damn, I better book it if I want to get back before-" The rain came down. Hard. "Oh screw it." She muttered, carefully trying to find her way back down safely. A thunder clap made her wince, as her foot slipped, almost sending her flying. Spotting a small path not too far away, she carefully maneuvered her way towards it. Once both feet were securely on solid ground, she pushed her soaking wet hair out of her face and sighed dramatically. "Don't say it. Don't even think it." She muttered to herself. A scream broke the rhythmic sound of the wind and rain. Looking around wildly, she opened her mind to its limits, before she picked up a distressed mind.<br>_'What's wrong?'_ She asked in a panic.  
><em><strong>'Falling. Sasuke is hurt...'<strong>_ She almost fell over. She had no idea that someone would actually answer her. Blinking away her surprise, she pushed her hair back again, and this time searched the person's mind for their location. Running, she began the climb up the cliff in the torrential rain and howling wind, being careful to stay away from the edge, almost hugging the side of the cliff as she climbed.

* * *

><p><em>'I can't hold on much longer!'<em> His mind was frantic. Looking down at the unconsious form of his little brother, he knew he had two options. One, drop Sasuke, save himself. Two, hold on until he can't anymore and fall to his death. Option one was a definite no. Then a panicked thought filled his mind. _**'What's wrong?'**_ Frowning, he thought it was a strange thing to think. _'__Falling.'_ He responded dryly, as if his mind was being stupid. _'__Sasuke is hurt...'_ The wind howled, and he struggled to keep a hold of Sasuke. The rain made it harder, as now Sasuke was slippery. Attempting to swing Sasuke up unto the path they had fallen from, the soft, rain-soaked earth crumbled. "Ahh!" A hand caught his, small and feminine. Looking up, he blinked to clear the rain from his eyes, but only saw the blury outline of someone small. He heard a grunt as another hand gripped his. The person pulled, and trying to help as much as possible, he tried to adjust his footing, using chakra to try make it easier to walk up the side of the cliff, but the earth just crumbled, and he only barely managed to push up off the cliff before it collapsed a little. With one more, mighty heave, the person pulled him up. Putting his arm onto the cliff, the hands let go, grabbing his shirt to keep him from falling. Reaching to his hand, the person helped pull Sasuke up. From this point, he could make out long, dark rain-soaked hair, and a small shape of a girl. Her hair and clothes clung to her, and he noticed she was barefoot. She cradled Sasuke's head in her lap as he pulled himself up onto the solid ground completely. She breathed heavily, attempting to catch her breath from pulling two people - both boys who probably weighed more than her together - from certain death. After he had managed to catch some of his breath, he crawled over to where they sat, the girl looked up at him.  
>"He's bleeding." She said, trying to make eye-contact with him. "He needs help now." He looked straight into her eye. They were a dark hazel, filled with concern for the younger boy.<br>"Yes." He struggled to his feet and reached for Sasuke. She shook her head, and still cradling him, lifted Sasuke into her arms.  
>"You're tired. Catch you're breath and I'll give him back." She nodded towards a path he could no longer see with all that rain. She walked seemingly able to see the path that he couldn't and her followed, being sure to keep her in his sights at all times. <em>'<em>_Who is she?'_

* * *

><p>Holding the young boy close, Tsukiko lead the way down the cliff, retracing her footsteps through the torrential rain. Once at the base, she was panting. <em>'<em>_He's heavy for a little guy.'_ She thought aimlessly. A hand touched her shoulder, and she looked over at the other boy. He looked slightly winded still, but she understood without him speaking. She handed over the boy, and when the older boy stumbled slightly, she caught his elbow and supported him a bit. He gave her a grateful smile, and nodded ahead. They made their way back into the Village, and he guided her towards his home. As they approached, the door flew open and a concerned woman ran out to meet them. She gasped when she saw the filthy state of the three children in front of her. "Sasuke! Itachi what happened!?" She took the unconscious child from the elder boy, and clutched him close to her. "Quickly, both of you inside, before you catch a cold."  
>Tsukiko was about to protest, when the boy caught her wrist and pulled her along. She stood, dripping wet inside the doorway, watching the mother fuss over both her sons. A man appeared, and Tsukiko closed her mind, recognizing his thoughts, and not in the mood to hear more.<br>"Explain." He demanded, glaring at Itachi.  
>He looked down and away. "A mistake. It won't happen again." He looked over at Tsukiko, who was desperately wishing she could just go home. "Thank you. If you hadn't come when you did, we wouldn't be here." She gave a weak smile, jumping slightly as a towel was thrown over her shoulders.<br>"Come, you can wear some of Itachi's clothes until yours are dry." Itachi's mother said, guiding the girl furthur into the house.  
>Tsukiko's cheeks turned a faint pink as she tried to refuse again, only to hear Itachi laugh at her.<br>"What's so funny!?" She demanded, glaring at him.  
>"You can't argue with her." He said smiling softly. "Just do as she says for now...?"<br>"Tsukiko." She said, looking away, sighing in defeat.

* * *

><p>Tsukiko had been guided into the living room and parked in front of the fire, her clothes peeled from her body. With the towel still securely wrapped around her shoulders, she stared into the fire. Itachi dropped off a shirt and some pants which loosely fitted her smaller form. Feeling much warmer and much more comfortable, Mikoto, Itachi's mother, began drying out Tsukiko's long hair.<br>"So, you're name is Tsukiko?" She asked gently.  
>"Yes ma'am." She responded sleepily. Mikoto began to brush the tangles out of her hair, the hair lightening until it was a dark blonde.<br>"Please, just call me Mikoto." Mikoto smiled warmly. "Thank you so much for helping my sons. I don't know what I would've done if something had happened to them."  
>Feeling a little awkward, Tsukiko blushed. "Ah... thanks for letting me dry up." She mumbled.<br>Mikoto smiled again. "It's the least I could have done."  
>A moment of silence passed, and Mikoto sighed. "You have such beautiful hair, Tsuki-chan."<br>_'Tsuki-chan?'_ "Um...Thank you." She blushed again, unused to the compliments she was recieving. She smiled. "Thank you."

* * *

><p>Itachi looked into the living room just as the girl thanked his mother and smiled. What a warm and cheery smile. Her hair fell long, reaching just past midway down her back, and as the fire light danced on it, it took on the appearance of molten gold.<br>"Quite the enigma, that Tsukiko girl." Blinking, Itachi looked over at his father.  
>"How so?" Itachi kept his voice neutral, hoping to hide his curiosity and interest from his father.<br>"You haven't heard? She was found bleeding and half dead in Teuchi's ramen bar." Fugaku looked down at his son and his gaze met his son. "No one knows where she came from, or how she even got there."  
>Itachi looked back at the girl. His clothes were much to big for her, and hung loosely around her small frame. Her face was small, and drawn, as if she had been starved for long periods of time. Despite the warm smile, he could see how her eyes would dart towards a door or a window, as if planning an escape if needed.<br>"That amulet." Itachi was drawn out of his musings by his father's voice. "I've seen that amulet somewhere." He muttered.  
>Itachi looked over at the girl, noticing for the first time, the amulet in question. It was pretty, made almost entirely of silver, with a small golden crescent moon inside the silver circle. Despite its pretty appearance, Itachi couldn't discern anything unusual about it.<br>"Ahh it doesn't matter, all that matters is that you are safe." Itachi shot his father a small sad look.  
>"And Sasuke,"<br>"hmm"

Tsukiko shot Fugaku a dirty look. His own son! The child had almost fallen to his death and the only one who showed any sign of worry was his brother and mother!  
>When Mikoto had finished brushing her hair and the rain had stopped, Tsukiko excused herself from the family and made to go out the door. Itachi offered to take her home but she refused. "I can find my way from here, I walk around the village often so it's not a problem."<br>"But-"  
>"It's fine really! Thank you again for helping me and for everything," She turned and was out the door and running barefooted along the street.<br>"Maybe I should follow her to make sur-"  
>"No I'll do that. You get some rest," Fugaku walked outside and followed the girl at a distance but lost her when she vanished around a corner and into a crowd of people.<br>_'Hmph that girl is very clever. She knew someone would follow her so she took a route that she could hide in.'_ Fugaku smiled to himself. '_She's a clever child indeed.'_

Tsukiko could tell she was being followed. Not caring if he knew where she lived, but neither was she interested in being babied, she turned down a well walked road, where people where still wandering around, now that the rain had stopped and merged in with the crowd. A few people gave her an odd look, seeing this young girl wander around bare foot. Ignoring them, she made her way slowly home. She thought back on everything that had happened, and blushed slightly, remembering the kind smile that Itachi had given her, and the warmth in his voice when he spoke. She arrived at her home, turning the key and stepping inside. _'__He has a beautiful mind...'_ She thought, a small smile on her lips. '_Its so...bright and...warm...'_ She shook her head, and closed the door behind her, locking it and wandering over to her bedroom. Changing into something more suitable for sleeping, she curled up under the sheets, and drifted off to sleep.


	3. Something Worth Protecting

**Ohayo minna~ yeah, this took a bit longer than i originally thought it would to do  
>Its nothing like the original chapter had been, which is good since there was like NO character development in it, and i decided it'll all be rewritten and made all shiny new like this chapter<br>reviews and such would be much appreciated, so i can see how i'm doing and what i need to work on for future chapters and all that  
>so yeah, let me know how i'm doing<strong>

_'Thoughts'  
>~Dreams~<em>  
><strong>'Other people's thoughts, when in Tsukiko's head'<strong>_  
><em>**Demonic** **Voice**  
><span>Things that are written<span>  
>"Normal Talking"<br>**"Demon Talking"**

* * *

><p>The sunlight trailed in through her curtains, eliciting a disgruntled groan from the sleeping girl, who opened one hazel eye to glare at the intruding sunlight. Sighing, she rolled out of her soft futon and made her way to her bathroom, stretching lazily as she walked. A knock at her door, drew her attention. Grumbling under her breath, she made her way to the door.<br>"Ahh, there you are Tsukiko-chan." The landlady of the room she was currently staying in stood at her door, holding a small parcel and bag. "Someone dropped these off for you this morning. Its good to see you're making friends already." She smiled warmly at the girl, who sleepily blinked at her.  
>"Who's it from?" She drawled, sleep still heavy in her voice.<br>"I don't know, but the note says its for you." She handed Tsukiko the bag and parcel before saying goodbye and heading off in another direction.

Sighing, she stepped back into her apartment and looked at the note attached to the parcel. It had her name written in very neat handwriting. Putting the stuff onto a small table, she read the note.

Thank you again for helping my sons. You forgot these so I had them returned to you, along with some cookies as a thank you.

Blinking rapidly, she checked the bag and saw that within were her clothes. Running back to her room, she found the discarded clothes in a corner and realized they weren't hers. _'Well...that happened...'  
><em>Sighing, she quickly ran and washed them, thankful that it was still pretty early, then hung them up to dry. Wandering back to the table, she opened the parcel and could smell the still relatively warm cookies inside. Hungrily, she ate one or two before deciding to get dressed. After dressing, she looked around her small apartment, and decided to tidy up.  
>"Well." She muttered to herself. "After cleaning, and stuff, I am bored." Checking on the clothes, she was annoyed to find that they were still very wet.<br>Flopping onto the floor, she sat cross-legged and decided to stare at it until it was dry.

_~She was sitting somewhere dark, the soft chatter of voices somewhere just beyond her hearing, steadily getting louder as they approached.  
><em>"_Why won't the damn thing co-operate with us?" One slightly nasally voice demanded.  
><em>"_Because the host is resistant." A darker voice responded. Tsukiko shivered and curled into a tighter ball. "Don't worry, __**he'll**__ break her yet." Looking up, she saw a face smirking at her from a small hole in the door. "And when he does... We will be unstoppable!"~_

Tsukiko gasped and sat up straight. "Weird." She mumbled, rubbing her arms. "When did I fall asleep? More importantly." She looked up at the sky. The sun was just past midway. "Geez! How long was I sleeping!?" She checked the clothes and was pleased to see they were now dry. Folding them, she put them into a bag, and decided to head to Itachi's house and return his stuff. She locked the door behind her, and set off.

* * *

><p>It wasn't long before she reached the house, and it turned out Mikoto was the only one home.<br>"Thank you for the cookies and my clothes." She said, as she handed the bag of clothes to Mikoto. "I didn't even realize I was still wearing those clothes."  
>Mikoto smiled. "Its alright. Did you want to come in for some tea? Itachi and Sasuke should be back soon."<br>Tsukiko shook her head and smiled. "Its alright thank you. I was planning on exploring some more today."  
>Mikoto smiled. "Itachi could give you a tour of the village if you like?"<br>She blushed slightly, but still managed a warm smile. "No, no. I don't mind."  
>"If you insist. But please, do visit again sometime." Mikoto laughed gently.<br>Tsukiko smiled gently, a genuine smile. "I will. I promise."

* * *

><p>After managing to extract herself from the Uchiha Matron, Tsukiko decided to head off in a random direction, when she sensed someone coming her way. Then she heard them. Turning, she saw a dark haired little boy running directly at her. <em>'Wow, look at him go. He's not gonna stop is he?'<br>_He didn't. Bracing herself, she caught the boy as he collided with her.  
>"We really need to stop meeting like this." Tsukiko chuckled as she helped the boy regain his balance. He looked up at her with wide, dark eyes. His head was wrapped with a bandage, and he blinked at her a few times.<br>"Um...sorry?" He mumbled looking away, his cheeks vaguely pink.  
>"I'll forgive you." She said, smiling at him. "This time."<br>He blinked at her, then realized she was joking. He grinned. "I'll try to be more careful."  
>Tsukiko realized she'd seen this kid somewhere else. Snapping her fingers, she startled the little boy. "Sasuke!" She exclaimed.<br>"Yeah, how'd you know?" He tilted his head adorably.  
>"I helped your brother get you home last night." She explained. Sasuke made another adorable face, his lips forming a small "oh" as he struck his palm with his other hand in understanding. "How's your head?" She asked, frowning in concern as she gently touched the bandage.<br>Sasuke grinned hugely. "It's OK. Mom said that I was lucky it wasn't worse."  
>Tsukiko smiled. "I'm glad it's not serious."<br>"Hey Sasuke, who's your friend?" The two looked over to the voice. It was a tall dark haired boy, he must have been at least 14, his black hair falling messily into his dark eyes. _'He has face that looks like it only knows how to smile.'_ She thought to herself. _'He also has a very bright and cheerful mind. Its quite warm.'  
><em>"Shisui-san! Where's Itachi!?" Sasuke darted to the boy's side,grabbing his arm and shaking it almost violently. Tsukiko smiled, stifling a giggle.  
>"Ow! Sasuke you're gonna rip my arm off!" The boy, Shisui, whined.<br>"Sasuke, stop trying to tear off Shisui's arm." Tsukiko looked up and saw Itachi approach them, laughing softly. His long dark hair was pulled back in a low ponytail, a small amused smile played on his lips.  
>She smiled at him, and he smiled back. Shisui looked between them, before grinning and throwing an arm around Itachi's shoulders. "So, are you going to introduce me to this cutie, hey Itachi-kun~?"<br>Itachi blushed faintly, avoiding eye-contact with his friend. "This is Tsukiko-san."  
>"Hi." She said shyly, waving and smiling at them.<br>"Nice to meet you." Shisui, said. He released Itachi to grab her hand, holding it up between them, grinning into her face. "My name is Uchiha Shisui."  
>"Nice to meet you to, Shisui-kun."<br>Shisui grinned, seemingly pleased with himself. Tsukiko visibly relaxed, a genuine smile gracing her face. _'I didn't even realize I was tense..'_ She thought absently.

* * *

><p>It was almost like she had been afraid of them. When Shisui had grabbed her hand, she had tensed, as if preparing to make a run for it. But then she completely relaxed, and by far the most beautiful smile he had ever seen on her face yet, appeared. He decided then, that he wanted to see it again. Smiling slightly he put a hand on Sasuke's head.<br>"Did you get your things, Tsukiko-chan?"  
>She looked at him, with a mildly confused expression, that changed to a smile. "Yes, thank you for bringing them home for me, Itachi-kun."<br>He could feel his cheeks heat up slightly, but his embarrassment fled when his little brother grinned widely.  
>"Tsuki-neesan, are you coming to train with us?" He asked, latching onto the girl's arm.<br>"Neesan?" She questioned softly. She gave a small smile, chuckling nervously. "Um, sure. I didn't have anything better to do."  
>Sasuke looked like his birthday had come early. He could barely contain himself. Itachi walked quietly behind, as Tsukiko walked ahead with Sasuke and Shisui. Sasuke was holding her hand, skipping slightly with a huge smile on his face. Shisui was chattering away excitedly with her.<br>_'There's a light that seems to follow her.'_ He thought absently. _'It's really quite beautiful. Something worth protecting, like Sasuke.'_ He saw her look over her shoulder at him, her face turning a faint pink. For a moment, he wondered if she could hear his thoughts, before he dismissed the thought as foolish.

* * *

><p><em>'Something worth protecting, hmm?'<em> Tsukiko looked at her linked hand with Sasuke, then over at the smiling, chattering Shisui, then tipped her head, a faint blush on her cheeks as she looked over at Itachi. _'That's a nice idea.'_

* * *

><p>The days almost seemed to flow by, Tsukiko found that she enjoyed the company of the Uchiha boys. Shisui would frequently leave the village on missions, and when he came back, he would tell wild tales to the amusement of Sasuke. When she wasn't with them, she would be with Naruto, who had definitely become attached to her. But it wouldn't be long before this peace fled. She could feel it.<p>

* * *

><p>It had been a long day, and Sasuke had fallen asleep. Tsukiko sat with her back against a tree, the small boy sleeping in her lap, when she was found sleeping by Itachi and Shisui.<br>"Ahh, isn't that the cutest thing you've ever seen?" Shisui chuckled.  
>Itachi smiled gently, shaking his head. "What were they up to? They look exhausted."<br>Itachi bent and lifted his sleeping brother into his arms, planning to carry the boy back home. Shisui moved to wake Tsukiko, when she tensed, her whole body becoming rigid. Her face twisted into a pained and tormented visage. As they watched in horror, her breathing quickened, until her eyes snapped open, an ear-splitting shriek filling the small clearing. She was on her feet and running, her eyes wide with terror. Sasuke was jolted awake, clinging to his brother in fright.  
>"Nii-san, what's wrong with Tsuki-neesan? Did someone scare her?" He questioned, fear and confusion in his eyes. Putting Sasuke gently on the ground, Itachi looked over to Shisui.<br>"Stay with Sasuke, I'll find Tsukiko-chan and find out what's wrong." He said calmly. Shisui nodded, his normally cheerful face completely serious.

* * *

><p><em><strong>"You think yourself my better?"<strong>__ This was her voice. She could feel the words coming from her mouth, but she knew it couldn't possibly be her own words. __**"You are foolish, little man. I will kill you."  
><strong>_"_So you keep saying, Demon, but I find that I am still alive." A voice sneered back. "Now, you will perform the task I have set out for you, or the girl will suffer again."  
>A dark laugh filled the air. <em>_**"You presume to command me? Threaten the girl. I care not."  
><strong>_"_You and I both know your lives are intertwined. If she dies, you will too."  
><em>"_**So be it. You will be hard pressed to kill me however."**__ A signal. The weapons came from every direction, but non hit her. She found herself leaping through the air, gracefully twisting as she avoided the deadly projectiles. One, two three. She killed the first with a powerful punch to the face, crushing his skull against the wall behind him, with inhuman strength, his blood painting the wall an eerie crimson. The second was slain as she twisted around, kicking the ninja over the edge of a cliff, where she dashed her skull against the rocks. The third was killed by his own blade, as she forced his hand to put the blade through his eye and into his brain. Another volley of kunai, flashing in the light of a full moon, a number of them tearing her clothing and cutting her arms and legs. One embedded itself into her arm, causing her to hiss in agony. Ripping the weapon from her skin, she released a powerful wave of energy, blasting the rest away. Turning to the leader, she stalked towards him, a bestial sneer on her face.  
><em>"_You will not kill me, Demon." The voice chuckled. "_She_ cannot do it."  
>A raised eyebrow. <em>_**"You believe she controls me?"**__ A dark maniacal laugh bubbled from her lips. __**"I **_**will****_ kill you. Have no doubt of that." _**_A pause, a dark sneer on her lips. __**"When the day comes, I will have you killed by her hand even."  
><strong>__The man smirked, his face shrouded in shadow. Pain ripped through her skull, and Tsukiko fell to her knees, screaming.~_

* * *

><p>He found her curled up behind the Memorial Stone, her arms wrapped around her knees.<br>"Tsukiko-chan?" He called softly, approaching slowly. "What's wrong?" He reached a hand out to touch her arm.  
>She swatted his hand away, and he saw her face twisted into a mask of absolute terror. Pulling his stinging hand away, he frowned in confusion. "Tsukiko-chan?"<br>"S-Stay away!" She retreated further from him.  
>"Let me help you." He said gently, smiling warmly to her. "You don't have to be afraid."<br>"Don't touch me!" She screamed, throwing her hands up in front of her. A blinding pain shot through his mind, and he fell to his knees, clutching his head as he howled in agony.

* * *

><p>Memories flooded behind her eye lids. <em>'These aren't mine, are they?'<br>_She could feel her power digging somewhere, pulling the memories towards her, searching for something. What it was that she was searching for, she didn't know. Then memories she recognized surfaced. _'These are Itachi-kun's memories.'_ She realized. With a gasp, the memories stopped, and her eyes flew open. She watched in horror as Itachi collapsed in front of her, his eyes rolling back into his head. "Itachi!" She cried, catching him as he fell.  
>"I'm sorry! I'm so, so sorry!" She cried, tears streaming down her cheeks as she clung to his unconscious form. "Please wake up, I'm really sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you." She sobbed, her tears dripping onto Itachi's pale face.<br>"Tsukiko-chan?" She looked up to see Shisui approaching cautiously.  
>"Sh-Shisui-kun..." She whispered brokenly. "I-I'm so sorry."<br>Shisui ran over to their side, checking Itachi's vitals, frowning in confusion. "What happened?" He demanded.  
>Tsukiko flinched, unaccustomed to the hard edge in his voice. "I-I don't know." She began to wring her hands. "I-I think I hurt him, but I don't know..."<br>"There are no visible wounds." He said gently, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I know you didn't mean it, if you did hurt him-"  
>"But I <em>did<em>!" She cried. "I was in his head, and I did something and now he's hurt!"  
>Shisui frowned. "<em>In<em> his head? How?"  
>"I-I don't know.." She mumbled. "I've always been able to hear thoughts, but that was the first time I've actually <em>been<em> in someone's head."  
>Sighing, Shisui pulled Tsukiko into a gentle hug. "It's ok, I know you didn't do it on purpose."<br>Tsukiko sniffled, hesitantly wrapping her arms around Shisui, before she burst into tears again. He rocked her gently as she sobbed, until she fell into a fitful sleep.

* * *

><p>Sighing tiredly, Shisui looked at the sleeping girl in his arms, then over at his unconscious friend. <em>'I need to bring them to the Hokage. He'll know what to do.'<em>


	4. What's Important

_I don't own anything except Tsukiko and random bad guys._

_'Thoughts'  
><em>_~Dreams~  
><em>**'Other people's thoughts, when in Tsukiko's head'  
><strong>**Demonic** **Voice  
><strong>Things that are written  
><span>"Normal Talking"  
><strong>"Demon Talking"<strong>

* * *

><p>Itachi woke up later that same day, but Tsukiko wouldn't go see him. After Shisui had brought both of them to the Hokage, she had spoken with the Third, while Itachi was tended to. The Third knew she wasn't the type to attack people, that as far as he was aware, were the only friends she had. But she was scarred. Her mind was reliving things that were traumatic, and through them, she was discovering a power that was potentially even more dangerous than the Sharingan. She had the makings of a Shinobi. That much he could tell. After Itachi woke up, he was questioned on the experience. The only ones who knew of her power, were Shisui, Itachi and the Hokage. They decided, that in order to protect her from those that would use her power against the village, she would be kept secret. No one else could know about her Kekkei Genkai.<br>Shisui was chosen as her teacher, and she would train with him and Itachi.

* * *

><p>Tsukiko sat on her futon, staring out at the moon. She had all but cut herself off from the Uchiha brothers after the incident. Shisui frequently visited, and often brought Itachi, but when he did, she was simply never there. She was wracked with guilt, and was floundering. Shisui tried to teach her, but she was unresponsive, reluctant to learn.<br>"What do I do?" She whispered, a tear rolling down her cheek.  
>"Tsuki-neechan." A voice whispered, causing her to blink her tears away quickly.<br>"Naru-chan, why are you hiding outside my window?" She questioned, staring at Naruto, who was sort of hanging from her window sill.  
>"I- uh..." He fumbled for an answer. <em><strong>'I was worried...you weren't yourself...'<strong>_ "You were acting weird, so I thought I'd ask, but then I got stuck."  
>Tsukiko blinked, then smiled. She helped the small boy through the window, and switched on the lights.<br>"Are you really training to be a ninja?" Naruto questioned, sitting cross legged on her futon, his small face bright with excitement.  
>She looked over at him, frowning. "I don't really want to. I don't want to hurt people."<br>"But ninjas are the best!" Naruto gushed, leaping to his feet from the futon. "They are strong and fast and awesome and they protect everyone!"

_~'Something worth protecting.'~_

Tsukiko blinked again, before turning to face Naruto, her expression thoughtful. "If I was a ninja, I could protect people I cared about? I wouldn't hurt them?"  
>Naruto looked at her as if the answer was obvious. "Duh."<br>She frowned, looking down at the floor, her hair falling into her eyes. _'I don't want to hurt people anymore. Not like I did to Itachi-kun.'  
><em>"But I will hurt people." She whispered.  
>"If I was a ninja," Naruto hadn't heard her, thankfully. "I would fight really hard to make people acknowledge me." He spoke softly, his head bowed and hands clenched.<br>"I acknowledge you, Naru-chan." Tsukiko said, putting a hand on his shoulder.  
>Naruto looked up, his eyes filled with tears that hadn't spilled yet. He smiled up at her. "And that's why when I'm a ninja, I will become stronger than everyone, so that Tsuki-nee won't ever cry again!"<br>Tsukiko blinked, shock evident on her face. "W-what do you mean?"  
>"Tsuki-nee was crying earlier." Naruto said, tilting his head to the side slightly. "I don't want you to cry like that ever again, believe it!"<br>Tsukiko smiled. "You know what? I think I will become a ninja."  
>Naruto gave her a slightly confused, but pleased look. "So that way, I can protect my little Ototo." She smiled, hugging Naruto warmly.<p>

* * *

><p>The change was almost immediately obvious. Shisui noticed her reluctance vanish, replaced with firm determination as she took on his challenges and worked hard.<br>"What changed?" He asked, visibly pleased with Tsukiko's new found determination, but altogether confused.  
>"I realized that I need to become stronger." She said simply, shrugging her shoulders. "That way I can make sure I don't hurt anyone like Itachi-kun, and I can keep my precious people safe."<br>Shisui smiled. "That's good. A good ninja has a goal. Preferably, an honorable one."  
>"Tsuki-neechan!" Tsukiko turned her head to see a little raven-haired boy running towards her eagerly, followed hesitantly by an older boy.<br>Tsukiko smiled to them both, the first sign of warmth she had shown them in weeks. Itachi seemed to visibly relax, a small smile on his face, while Sasuke simply glomped her, demanding she teach him whatever Shisui was teaching her.  
>"Maybe one day, Sasuke-chan." She said smiling. "But first, you have to get a little bigger."<br>"No fair!" He whined. They all laughed, as Tsukiko looked back towards the village. _'Thank you, Naru-chan. You helped me realize what's important.'_

* * *

><p>It had been a month, and Tsukiko was aware that her progress was not normal. Shisui said she was at least chunin level, despite only learning these techniques in under a month. Other jonin were interested too, coming to observe her progress, or to help teach her a technique or two when Shisui or Itachi were busy.<br>Today was her rest day though. Shisui was on a mission, Naruto and Sasuke were at the Academy, and a number of the regular jonin were also on missions. Tsukiko was busy staring up at the stone faces of the past Hokages. Her focus was on the Fourth. He had died protecting the village. He might not have known everyone, maybe he even disliked a lot of the villagers, but he had given his life to keep them safe.  
>"The epitome of all Shinobi." She mused softly. "What is a shinobi?" She questioned to herself.<br>"Someone who endures." Tsukiko looked around slowly. She had been so absorbed in her thoughts, she hadn't noticed Itachi approach her. "Self-sacrifice."  
>"A nameless shinobi protecting peace from the shadows." She chuckled. "Shisui told me that much."<br>Itachi raised a curious eyebrow, a small smile on his face.  
>"Its his favorite lecture." She smiled. "I know you know."<br>"True." He sat beside her. "What is your dream for the future then?"  
>She looked at him, an amused expression on her face. "You're awfully talkative today."<br>He smiled again. "All Academy students get asked that question. It makes them think about their reason for becoming a shinobi."  
>"I want to keep my little brothers safe." She said quietly, looking back up at the sky. "I want to protect my friends, from anyone who might hurt them. I want to be someone they can rely on."<br>"I rely on you." Itachi said casually. Tsukiko blinked and looked back at him. "I trust you with my life."  
>She blushed and turned away. "Don't just say stuff like that!"<br>"Why not?"  
>She frowned, her head still facing away. "Its weird."<br>"Is it?"  
>"Stop that."<br>"Stop what?"  
>"Itachi!" She turned around to see him laughing. "Its not funny!"<br>He clutched his stomach, wiping a tear from his eyes. "But you're just so cute when you get worked up."  
>She stuck her tongue out at him. "You and Shisui should go soak your heads."<br>He chuckled at that, shaking his head in amusement.  
>"Are you sure you two aren't really the same person?" She asked testily, standing up and dusting her shorts off. "You are both insufferable sometimes."<br>"Only sometimes?" She grunted in response. Itachi smiled gently up at her. "You're always staring off into space. Care to share your thoughts?"  
>She paused, looking down at him. "Just thinking about the Fourth today." She said shrugging. She looked back at his stone face. "He paid the ultimate price for peace."<br>"He did." Itachi said quietly, staring at the stone face with reverence.  
>"So, are we going to eat, or are you just going to think about asking all day?" She questioned suddenly. Itachi blinked, his face turning pink as he realized she could hear his thoughts.<br>"You shouldn't be in people's heads."  
>"And you shouldn't mess with people's heads." She retorted. Itachi chuckled before getting up and walking with her to find something to eat.<br>"You know, I meant every word." He said, suddenly serious.  
>"I know." She said, not looking at him, an embarrassed blush on her cheeks. "Feeling's mutual."<br>Itachi blushed in response, but smiled at her anyway.

* * *

><p>3 months from the Incident, and she was brought before the Hokage again. This time, he was to judge her skill and decide whether to put her through the chunin exams or not. By the end of the demonstration, the Hokage, as well as the jonin present, all agreed. She was at least jonin level if not a bit stronger. This of course, did nothing for Shisui's ego, but it was agreed that she would have to go through the chunin exams regardless. They were in a week, and she would unfortunately have to go through on her own. This proved to be a good choice, when she came through the exam well, despite the handicap of being on her own, and she was promoted to jonin shortly after. She was placed onto a team with Shisui and Itachi, since her teamwork was best with them. By the end of 6 months, she was celebrating a year of being in the village. A year since she had appeared, but only six months since the Incident. Her fears for harming her friends waned by each day, as she gained confidence.<p>

* * *

><p>He and his clan mate were perched precariously on the roof, waiting for confirmation from the third member of their team that she had accomplished her task.<br>"Worried?" His friend whispered to him, putting a hand on his shoulder.  
>"This is her first A-rank mission." He responded, his eyes searching the dark for the familiar glint of gold that would reveal Tsukiko to him.<br>"True." Shisui responded, shifting to get a bit more comfortable. "But she's clever, strong and fast. She'll be fine."  
><em>'Its done, move in.'<em> Tsukiko's thoughts reached their minds, giving them the signal for all clear.  
>Sighing in relief, Itachi moved quickly to move into his position, while Shisui went a different way. He spotted Tsukiko standing near the edge of the building they were infiltrating, unconscious ninja being moved carefully out of view. Itachi paused to investigate one of them, using a Transformation jutsu to make himself look like the ninja. Tsukiko did the same, taking on the appearance of the second ninja. She then linked her mind with his, feeding him the information she had gathered from the ninja that would be immediately important. With a nod, they took up positions, and waited a few minutes before the next shift arrived. Quickly moving in, they hurried to find their target.<br>_'Stop worrying, this is a B-Rank at most and you know it.'_ She chastised him.  
><em>'A-Rank, never underestimate your enemy Tsukiko-chan.'<em> He responded.  
>She gave him a look he recognized, even with this unfamiliar face. Sighing, he spoke out loud. "I know, I know."<br>"What are you two doing here?" A ninja approached them, watching them suspiciously.  
>"Just got off guard duty." Tsukiko responded. "The other shift is on."<br>"I see." The ninja shrugged and wandered back where he came from. Tsukiko shook her head and led the way. _'Shisui should be in place now.'_ She informed him.  
><em>'Let's complete the mission then.'<em>

* * *

><p>Tsukiko could feel her frustration growing with Itachi. He was fussing, even if he wouldn't show it, and she knew Shisui knew. <em>'Why doesn't Shisui do something? He won't listen to me...'<br>_They stopped outside the door, where the target was currently hiding. Nodding to Itachi, she reached out and opened the door, revealing the target sitting in a chair, tied up. The two moved in quickly, Itachi untying the Target, while Tsukiko contacted Shisui and opened the window. Shisui appeared seconds later.  
>"The patrols have been dealt with. With luck, we should be half way to the village before they realize the girl is missing." Tsukiko nodded, and released the transformation jutsu. Shisui, looked back over his shoulder, turning back to Tsukiko. "Go take point, Itachi and I will take care of her. You know what to do."<br>She nodded. Slipping out the window, she quickly and quietly moved about the path they had decided, ensuring it was unobstructed. Before long, she sensed her team mates approaching. At the border of her senses, she sensed something else, that caught her attention. Ensuring the route was safe, she went to inspect the strange sense she had gotten. Approaching, she discovered a number of ninja with masks standing in a semi circle. As she came closer, she noticed them tense, and their thoughts suddenly focused on her. _'They know I'm here!'_ She quickly retreated, but then noticed that they had begun to follow her. She used her technique to incapacitate them from within their own minds, trying to get them to give up the chase, but they kept following. Eventually she realized she wouldn't be able to join up with the other two, since that would put the mission at risk.  
><em>'Shisui, get the girl somewhere safe, I can't meet up.' <em>She quickly relayed her problem, when kunai began to fly at her. Dodging, she turned to repel the ones she wouldn't be able to dodge. _'Run!'_ She ordered. She changed her path, running in a different direction from where Shisui and Itachi would be.  
>"Crap!" She cursed, skidding to a halt as a cliff face loomed before her. She looked around, cursing as she realized she had run herself into a dead end. Turning she saw the shinobi appear from the forest, closing in on her slowly, dark chuckles emitting from the masks.<br>"Well, if it isn't the little Tsukiko brat." The leader leered, stepping out of the group. A symbol flashed on his chest, and Tsukiko froze.

_~Men with a symbol like a dragon in the shape of a tear drop, the color of blood surrounded her. The leader stepped forward, a whip in hand.  
>Crack.<br>Pain shooting through her small frame, a cry escaping chapped lips.  
>Crack.<br>Blood trickled down her back, the metallic tang filling her nostrils and choking her.  
>Crack.<br>Spots appeared before her eyes, the edges of her vision tinted black.  
><em>"_Enough." A voice rang. "We don't want to kill her. Yet."~_

* * *

><p>Itachi sprinted headlong through the forest, heading in the direction he had picked up. He knew something was off, he just knew it. And now, Tsukiko was being chased down by shinobi. As he got closer, he became aware of the overpowering feeling of Tsukiko's mind technique. He paused just outside her range, looking around for somewhere he could get a good vantage from. Climbing up a tree, he heard the agonized screams of men as Tsukiko's technique tore their minds apart. He despised the technique, but right now he was too concerned for her safety to care. But then he heard her blood curdling scream, and his blood ran cold. Leaping from the tree, he took off in the direction of her scream. Coming out into a clearing, he found a group of men, their mask torn off by their own hands, their faces void of all emotion, as they lay there drooling. A few yet stood, one of them with an unconscious Tsukiko thrown over his shoulder. Anger filled him as he watched the man turn slowly to face him.<br>"And you must be one of the two shinobi who were with her earlier." The man said slowly. "Walk away now. You needn't throw your life away for this brat."  
>"Release Tsukiko-chan, or I will kill you." Itachi said calmly, pulling out two kunai.<br>"Brat, we ain't giving you the girl." Another masked man snapped. "Boss would do much worse to us than you could possibly imagine if we don't bring her back."  
>Realization hit him. These people were probably to blame for the way Tsukiko was when she had arrived in the village. They were to blame for her mental state after her body had recovered. Fury filled him, and he activated his Sharingan.<br>"You hurt Tsukiko." He said softly. "Broke her, made her afraid." Fixing his gaze on them, he took an offensive posture. "I won't let you hurt her again. You will pay for what you've already done to her."  
>"Kill him." The leader ordered.<p>

* * *

><p>She woke up to the sound of combat. Her eyes cracked open, and she watched as bodies moved at the edge of her blurry vision. She lay there, unable to move, pain wracking her entire body. She could hear someone calling to her, but she felt like she was drowning, and slowly her vision darkened again.<p>

* * *

><p><em>'Where am I?'<br>_She was surrounded on all sides by darkness, that seemed almost alive.  
><strong>"You are a real pain, you know that?"<strong> A voice echoed all around her.  
><em>'Who are you!?'<em> She called, trying to find the source of the voice. Everything felt muted, as if she was under water.  
><strong>"None of your damn business."<strong> The voice snapped. "**Stop messing around and wake up already."  
><strong>A giant eye opened, blood red and slitted. It focused on her, fear coursing through her.

Tsukiko gasped, her eyes flying open. Reflexively she tightened her arms around the person carrying her. When she had established that she wasn't in any immediate trouble, her eyes were drawn to the back of a dark head.  
>"Itachi?" She croaked. Her throat felt dry and sore, as if she had been screaming. <em>'I did scream though, didn't I?'<br>_"I'm glad you're OK." Came his almost cold response. _**'How could you be so careless?! I was worried!'**_ She could hear the thoughts he wanted to voice, but couldn't.  
>Resting her head on his shoulder, she sighed softly. "I'm sorry." She murmured, just loud enough for him to hear. He tensed momentarily, but then relaxed, remembering her abilities.<br>"It's alright." He said gently. "You're safe, that's all that matters."  
>Tears began to fall from her eyes, leaving a little wet patch on his neck. "I'm sorry." She sobbed. <em>'I'm always causing him trouble.'<br>_He stopped walking, his arms tightening on her legs. "Tsukiko." His voice was sharp, causing Tsukiko to flinch. "I won't let anyone hurt you like they did."  
>Her eyes widened.<br>"I don't need mind reading powers to know they hurt you." He said calmly. "You're important to me. I never want to see you cry."  
>She wiped the tears from her eyes, then wrapped her arms securely around Itachi's neck. "Thank you." She whispered. "Thank you for coming for me."<p>

"I promised didn't I?"

* * *

><p><strong>Author Note: <strong>Hello yall!  
>I'm actually surprised how quickly this one was done, which is a little concerning methinks. A rushed job is generally not a very good job... Let me know how i did, just so i know where to improve<p>

...I know Itachi is a little OOC, but i reckon before the clan massacre, he was a funny guy. Well... until next time~


	5. Stupid Sexy Uchiha

"And that's what happened." Shisui finished, the Hokage's eyes closed as he listened to the mission report patiently. Exhausted, Tsukiko was barely able to maintain the link with Shisui and Itachi as they helped fill in the gaps for Shisui.  
><em><strong>'Can you tell what he's thinking?' <strong>_Tsukiko shot Shisui an annoyed look. He was fidgeting slightly, throwing her curious glances.  
><em>'No.'<em> Amusement radiated from Itachi when Shisui shot her a disbelieving look.  
><em><strong>'Yes you can, you just like making me suffer.'<br>**_Tsukiko gave him her most innocent expression. _'Why would I __**ever**__ do that?'  
><em>Shisui's eyes narrowed slightly, and he opened his mouth to retort audibly.  
>"If the two of you are quite done?" The Third interjected. Apparently he'd been watching the silent communication for some time, and his eyes held the amusement his face hid. "The presence of these... other... ninja is troubling. However, the mission was a success, and the merchant's daughter spoke highly of your rescue."<br>All three bowed their heads in acknowledgment. "Shisui and Itachi will stay here for a time, Tsukiko, report to Kakashi, you will head out with him in two days on another mission."  
>"Yes, Lord Hokage." She said stiffly, slightly disappointed. She'd been hoping to be able to nurse her wounds, so to speak.<br>She bowed and left, releasing her jutsu as she went. Once out the door, she stumbled slightly, bumping directly into someone. Unable to keep her balance, she fell over and landed with a thump on her bottom.  
>"Ow..." She mumbled, wincing as she tried to get back up.<br>"Ah, Tsukiko-san." She blinked and looked at the gloved hand in her face. She took it, and was pulled up to her feet. Her eyes flickered to the face attached to the arm, and found herself looking into one bored gray eye.  
>"Kakashi-senpai, I was just on my way to find you." She said, tipping her head and smiling.<br>"Really, why?" His eye flickered with curiosity.  
>"Hokage-sama said I had to report to you, something about a mission in two days?"<br>"Oh yeah..." He said, his usual bored demeanor back.  
>Tsukiko sighed. "Please don't be late senpai. Again." She shook her head, then looked back up, giving him an exhausted smile. "I'm going home, I need to rest."<br>He nodded and let her pass him. She could feel his eyes – eye – on her as she made her way down the hall and out the building. She could tell he was concerned. She didn't need mind reading powers to know he had seen just _how_ weak she had become. She was practically out of chakra. She knew he meant well, but she just wanted to be alone now. The blank, drooling faces of the people she had attacked were still looking back at her, and she just wanted to take a long bath. As if that would wash away what she had done. She snorted at herself, shaking her head as she made her way home. Once she got there, she groaned and threw herself onto her bed. She needed to recover as much chakra as possible for her next mission.

* * *

><p>The next day, she barely even roused all day. She was aware that Naruto had stopped by, using her house as a hideout when he did a prank, before he left again. That evening, she rolled over and spotted someone sitting by her door.<br>"Naruto?" She muttered, sitting up and yawning. She was trying to conserve her chakra, so she resisted resorting to her mind technique.  
>A small chuckle. Nope, not Naruto. "Why are you skulking around my room, Itachi?"<br>"I'm not skulking." He huffed, getting to his feet. "I was checking on you, then decided to rest for a bit."  
>She snorted at him, stretching as she popped her stiff joints. "I'm fine, as you can see."<br>He sat on the edge of her bed. "Did you want to talk about those ninja?"  
>She sighed. She should have known. "Not really. I don't actually know for sure what they were after." She shrugged, looking into Itachi's dark eyes.<br>"Hm." He tipped his head slightly. "Are you listening to my thoughts?"  
>"No." She narrowed her eyes at him. "Should I be concerned that you asked?"<br>Itachi smiled, shaking his head. He pulled out a little box and handed it to her. "Happy Birthday." He said simply.  
>She blinked at him. "You remembered?" She whispered. Sasuke had asked her when her birthday was, around a month after the anniversary of her arrival in the village. She hadn't realized that Itachi had been listening.<br>He smiled gently. "Of course."  
>She opened the box, revealing a bracelet with three silver rings and a crescent moon charm attached to the center one. She stared at it, open-mouthed. It was simple, but she loved it. It was hers, a gift given without strings attached.<br>"Itachi..." She looked up at him, and realized he was anxious. She jumped up, throwing her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly. He lost his balance, and they fell off the bed together, laughing as they went. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"  
>"I'm glad you like it." He laughed, trying to sit up a little with her still sprawled on top of him.<br>"I love it!" She grinned. Before her mind could fully catch up with her, she kissed him. He tensed up, his eyes wide as he stared at her. She pulled away quickly with a yelp, jumping away from him as if he burned her. "I-er... um-" Her face began to turn 50 shades of red as she stood there stammering, looking anywhere but at him.  
>He sat there, in shock for a moment, then threw his head back and laughed. She stared at him with wide eyes for a moment, her face beet red, before she chuckled softly, shaking her head at him. He wiped a tear from his eye, and noticed she was staring at him quietly. "Are you alright?"<br>She blinked at him. "I should be asking you that."  
>"<em>You<em> kissed _me_." He said pointedly.  
>"Not what I meant." She sang dismissively, flicking her head at him as she picked up the box with the bracelet.<br>He tilted his head to her curiously. "What did you mean?"  
>She turned around again, holding a hand out to him. "You've looked really sad lately." He smiled at her, then took her hand. She was barely able to register the wicked glint in his eye before she was pulled into his arms, and he kissed her. She sat there in confusion for a moment, before she was swept away with the moment.<br>"_...Best birthday ever..."_

* * *

><p>Tsukiko sat at her table eating her breakfast, her slightly damp hair curling around her face as she stared at the bracelet before her. After he had kissed her, he had left to go home, since his family would get suspicious if he didn't come home. Especially since he was currently on mission leave for the night. But that the kiss had happened at all had her mind racing for hours after that she simply couldn't get to sleep afterwards. When she finally did, she had thought it was all a crazy dream, brought on by hormones and such. But then she found the bracelet, and she realized it had been all real.<br>_"I wonder what this all means? I hope things don't become awkward."_ She blinked, then grimaced. _"Knowing Shisui, it will get awkward. Damn nosy Uchiha."_ Getting up, she set about getting ready for her mission that morning. Kakashi would be late, if past experience was anything to go by. When she had pulled on her shorts, a tank shirt and pulled her hair back into a high ponytail, her headband tied around her hips and fingerless gloves pulled onto her hands, she grabbed her ninja tools and put them in place. As she headed to her door, the bracelet caught her eye again. She stared at it for a moment, before she grabbed it and put it around her left ankle and ran to the door. She didn't bother with shoes. She never did. It drove Shisui nuts, since he swore one day she'd get hurt and it would be because she wouldn't wear shoes. She had always responded that if she worried about getting hurt, she'd walk around in tin armor like the samurai in the Land of Iron. That had him laughing. Tsukiko rolled her eyes at the memory and made her way to the meeting spot.  
>"What a surprise." She muttered. "He's not here."<br>"Who?" Tsukiko looked back over her shoulder to see Shisui and Itachi coming towards her. Tsukiko turned her head back again, feeling her cheeks warm slightly. Taking a deep breath she turned around and grinned at them.  
>"Who do you think, Shi-chan?"<br>"I told you not to call me that." He grumbled, frowning at her. "And you're not wearing shoes again."  
>"I know." She said, shrugging.<br>"Hold on." Shisui said, narrowing his eyes at her feet. "Don't you have something like that, Itachi?"  
>Tsukiko tipped her head, looking thoroughly confused.<br>"Maybe." Itachi said, looking away. A small blush brushed his cheeks, which only made _not_ blushing that much harder for Tsukiko.  
>Shisui looked between them, and frowned. "Did I miss something?"<br>Tsukiko shook her head. "Nope." _"Kakashi-senpai, if you don't hurry up I'll-"_  
>Shisui snapped his fingers. "That's right!" Tsukiko's eyes grew wide as he scooped her into a hug. "It was your birthday!"<br>"Erm..." She winced as he squeezed the life out of her. "Shi-chan-I can't..breath!"  
>He let her go, putting her down gently as she gasped for some much-needed air.<br>"Itachi, tell her happy birthday!" Shisui scolded. Both of them looked at him funny. "I missed something didn't I?"  
>"Itachi wished me happy birthday yesterday." Tsukiko said, shaking her head at her friend's antics. "On my actual birthday."<br>"Eh!?" He looked over at his friend. "You said you were running errands!"  
>"I was."<br>"Tsuki-chan is not an errand!"  
>"When I was done, I paid her a visit." Itachi said with a shrug. "No one sleeps ALL day."<br>"Oh...WHY DIDN'T YOU BRING ME WITH YOU!?" Shisui asked, his face comically annoyed. Itachi picked this moment to turn scarlet. _"Kakashi-senpai, now would be a GREAT time to turn up. 10 minutes late is forgivable...especially considering the circumstances...PLEASE!"  
><em>Shisui stared at his friend's red face, then slowly looked at Tsukiko, who was slowly turning pink herself. He stood there staring at them quietly for what felt like hours, before a slow grin spread on his face. "Are you guys...?" He looked back and forth again, neither one looking at him or each other. "You are!" He threw an arm around both shoulders and squeezed them. "Its about time."  
>"Sorry I'm late!" Kakashi strolled up, earning a dark glare from Tsukiko.<br>"No you're not." She grumbled. Shisui chuckled and patted her shoulder.  
>"Good luck with this one, Kakashi-senpai." He said, a wicked glint in his eyes. "She can be a real handful."<br>"Hey!" She turned on him, her expression indignant.  
>Itachi smiled gently to her. "Be safe alright?"<br>She turned a slightly darker shade of pink. "Sure." She murmured, looking down.  
>"Tsukiko-san, we should head out." Kakashi called out.<br>"Ah! Coming!" As she turned to follow, Itachi grabbed her hand and turned her back around. He planted a kiss on her cheek, grinning at the completely surprised expression on her face and her annoyed glance at Shisui who was laughing his head off. "I'll see you guys when I get back." She then turned and hurriedly caught up with Kakashi. Even though she could see the amused glint in his eye, she was glad he had more sense than to try and tease her about it. _"Geez... acting bashful like that... I'll get him back for embarrassing me... stupid sexy Uchiha..."_

* * *

><p><strong>AUTHOR NOTE: this took a lot longer because Tsukiko and Itachi refused to cooperate and in the end... this was created... I'm not sure whether or not to be satisfied, but whatever.<br>We'll see how this turns out, won't we?**


	6. Massacres and Betrayels

Greetings all. Yeah this may or may not be any good. I have no idea. Regardless, the reason this took so long to get done, is because Uni, work and family have become demanding...Uni more than the others... Anywhohaha, here it is and here you go.  
>Let me know what yall think, yesnomaybe? <p>

Tsukiko belongs to me, but the rest of the Naruto Crew don't...sadly :(

* * *

><p>Tsukiko sighed. It had been a crazy week, working with Kakashi, on a mission that ended up being a wild goose chase. It didn't help that Kakashi enjoyed teasing her.<br>"So, when did you and Itachi get together?"  
>She gave Kakashi a curious look. "What do you mean?"<br>"You're in love right?"  
>Tsukiko's face burned red. "Uh...that...Um..." Shaking her head, she cleared her throat. "Truthfully, I can't really answer that question."<br>"Why?"  
>"I'm twelve. What do I know about love?" She gave Kakashi a "well duh" look.<br>He chuckled, giving her a weird one-eyed, eye smile. "That makes sense. Didn't think I'd hear that from a teenage girl though."  
>"Preteen." She corrected. "They're much worse. Especially girls."<br>"You are far more mature than one would have thought, just looking at you."  
>"Thanks, I think."<br>The village came into view, and the two continued their banter as they wandered into the village. Already, Tsukiko could feel the tension in the air. "Something's wrong."  
>"Yeah, I feel it too." Kakashi said, suddenly serious. "I'm going to the Hokage to report, you head home, but keep an eye out for anything suspicious."<br>"Yes sir." She muttered back, as she leaped up onto a roof top. "Time to find Shisui or Itachi. They would know if something was wrong."

* * *

><p>"Itachi!" She called out, and said boy turned ever so slowly to look at her. His eyes seemed sadder than usual, and Tsukiko was tempted to use her mind reading technique to find out what was really bothering him. "Hey, I'm back!" She grinned, landing opposite him.<br>"Welcome back." He smiled warmly, but the smile didn't make it to his eyes. They were dull and lifeless, and it scared Tsukiko to see him like that.  
>Tsukiko frowned at him. "Itachi, what's wrong?"<br>His smile fell. "Shisui died."  
>Tsukiko stared at him in utter shock, attempting to process the information she had just received. "How?" She whispered, looking at him with wide eyes.<br>"Suicide." He said simply, looking down and away.  
>"But...He was always so happy... What happened? Itachi are you-"<br>"I don't know." He cut off harshly.  
>Tsukiko immediately tensed, sensing something was off about the way Itachi was acting. But the fresh pain of losing one of her closest friends left her vulnerable, and she could feel tears pricking her eyes. "I'm sorry." She said quickly, bowing as she turned and began to run away.<br>Before she got more than a step away, Itachi caught her wrist and pulled her into a tight embrace.  
>"Don't be, I shouldn't have snapped." He said quietly, kissing the top of her head. "I'm sorry, I didn't want you to find out like this."<br>"Itachi, are you alright?" She whispered softly, holding him close.  
>He didn't answer. Not verbally anyway. She felt him shudder as he buried his face into her hair. Unable to keep back the tears, she clung to Itachi as she began to sob into his shoulder. They stood there holding each other for some time, before a group of men from the Uchiha clan appeared, demanding to speak with Tsukiko.<br>"What did you do to Shisui?" They demanded. Tsukiko flinched away, confused and hurt that anyone would think she had hurt someone who was like an older brother to her. "He died shortly after you left the village on that last mission with Kakashi."  
>Itachi stepped out, putting himself between her and the angry men. "Tsukiko did nothing. She would never hurt Shisui."<br>"Everyone knows he cared for her, and now he's dead. I'll bet you don't mind though, since that means she's all yours."  
>"SHUT UP!" Tsukiko screamed, jumping out from behind Itachi. "Shisui was one of my dearest friends! He was the closest thing to a big brother I've ever known! I would <em>never<em> hurt him or anyone else in the village!" Fresh tears fell from her eyes. "And Itachi is _not_ like that! He would never kill or hurt the people he cared about! He is a good person!"  
>Itachi put a hand on her shoulder. "Tsukiko, come."<br>She complied, allowing Itachi to guide her away from the stunned men and back to her home. She stood in her doorway, and looked back at Itachi. She looked so fragile, staring at him with wide and sad eyes.  
>"Stay." She whispered. Her hazel eyes glittered sadly as she pleaded with him to not leave her alone. He chose to listen to her plea. Later that evening, he left while she slept fitfully, after crying herself to sleep.<p>

* * *

><p>The next week was practically hell for Tsukiko. Itachi was becoming more and more distant, and she was having a hard time respecting the promise she had made to him and Shisui, about not reading their minds unless in a mission and only ever the surface thoughts needed for communication. Sasuke was blissfully unaware, although he was concerned about his brother. He would sit with Tsukiko and talk. He'd complain about Naruto, and she'd smile and defend her other little brother. He'd talk about class, and how he was doing and how the girls were strange and pretty much anything he could think of. Tsukiko suspected it was his way of distracting himself from his brother's odd behavior.<br>"They always giggle and call me only to run away giggling again. And sometimes they're faces go really red and they start making funny noises when I talk to them." He said, pulling a face at Tsukiko.  
>She threw back her head and laughed. <em>Oh Sasuke...<em> "That _is_ weird."  
>"Hey, since Itachi can't teach me today, do you think you could help me with my shuriken technique?" Sasuke looked at her with the biggest puppy eyes, and Tsukiko smiled warmly.<br>"Sure, anything for you Sasuke." She ran her hand through his dark hair affectionately.  
>He cheered and jumped up, grabbing her hand as he dragged her to the training field. They trained together until it was late. Tsukiko walked with him part way and Sasuke waved goodbye cheerfully as he ran the rest of the way home. Tsukiko smiled and waved goodbye. When she was alone, Tsukiko's smile faded somewhat and she looked up to the moon.<br>"Did I do something wrong?" She questioned softly. "Did I do something to upset Itachi?" There was a pain in her chest, a feeling she didn't fully understand.  
>"No, you didn't do anything." A voice sounded behind her, and Tsukiko turned to see Itachi standing there, dressed in his uniform.<br>"Ah! Itachi, when did you get there?"  
>A small smile tugged at his lips, and he stepped towards her. "Just now. I'm sorry if I upset you."<br>Tsukiko shook her head. "No, I'm not upset. Not really. Just..." She looked up at him through her lashes, her expression concerned. "...Worried." '_What's going on? Why are you avoiding me?'  
><em>Itachi's face was emotionless, and he didn't even flinch when Tsukiko switched to telepathy.  
>"Nothing's wrong." He said calmly, putting a hand on her cheek. He gave a warm smile, but the warmth didn't quite reach his eyes. "I've been busy with missions."<br>Tsukiko's shoulders sagged. "Please don't shut me out." She whispered, her head dipping down.  
>She heard a sharp intake of breath, and found herself pulled into a tight hug.<br>"I'm sorry." It was all he said.  
>"Itachi...please..." Tears began to prick at the corners of her eyes. "I miss him too, but please don't shut me out of your life. Let me help you..." She put her arms around him weakly.<br>He pulled back slightly, one of his hands cupping her chin. He tipped her face up, so that she was looking him in the eyes. "Thank you." He pressed his lips against hers gently. Tsukiko's eyes drifted closed, and she sighed into his lips, kissing him back.  
>When they pulled apart from the kiss, they stood together for a while longer, they're eyes closed and foreheads resting against each other. "I should go home." Itachi eventually said, his voice heavy with regret.<br>"Itachi...I..." Tsukiko paused. "Take care, Itachi."  
>He kissed her head softly. "You too." She watched him walk away. He walked to the end of the street, then turned and smiled softly to her, before he vanished in a swirl of leaves. Tsukiko had a sinking feeling in her stomach. Something was very wrong.<p>

**Blood. There is blood on the air.**  
>Tsukiko tensed. She knew that voice. It came only a few times, and those few times had always left her feeling confused and frightened. But it was right. There was the tang of blood in the air, and the air was practically crackling with energy. <em>'Sasuke!'<em> She immediately flew into action. While she was certain that if there was something wrong, Itachi was more than capable of handling it, but her heart wouldn't stop hammering in her chest. Something was very wrong, and had been since she got back and learnt that Shisui had died.  
><em>'Itachi, what is going on? What aren't you telling me?'<em> She silently cursed herself for not using her telepathy to learn the truth. She had hoped that Itachi would trust her with what ever was bothering him. She'd thought and hoped the same about Shisui, so his suicide had understandably shocked and confused her. There was something deeper going on, something that she _knew_ she needed to know. She reached the compound and skidded to a halt at the sight that met her. All around her, members of the Uchiha clan lay in pools of their own blood, their unseeing eyes staring blankly at the moon. Gagging, she turned away from the sight, and shivered. "Sasuke! Itachi! Please answer me!" She called, running through the streets, finding only more corpses.  
>"Please! I don't wanna die!" Tsukiko froze when she heard Sasuke scream.<br>"Sasuke!" She darted around the corner, and caught the boy as he charged straight into her. "Sasuke! Sasuke its me, Tsukiko!"  
>"Tsuki-nee!" Sasuke was crying, his face ashen with terror. "Mom, dad...aunty, uncle... everyone... he-"<br>"Sasuke, where's Itachi?" She asked, her heart thundering in her chest. "Who would do this?"  
>"Itachi...he-" Sasuke suddenly froze, his eyes wide and locked on someone behind her. Tsukiko tensed, her hand immediately moving to the kunai at her hip. She spun around, putting herself between Sasuke and the person. She froze when she saw Itachi standing there, his expression blank.<br>"Itachi! There you are!" She lowered the kunai and stepped towards him. Sasuke gasped, and reached out grabbing for her arm, but he missed.  
>"Tsuki-nee! Don't!"<br>"Itachi what's going -" She gasped as his fist connected with her gut, bringing her to her knees. "-on." She coughed, glancing up at him. She found herself staring into unusual sharingans, before she was forced to relieve everything up to that point. Itachi had murdered his family. She was certain she was screaming. She could hear Sasuke screaming her name. The last thing she saw before darkness claimed her, was Itachi's impassive gaze, as he tortured her mind.

* * *

><p><strong>"Back again, are we?"<strong>  
>Tsukiko found herself in that ever shifting blackness once more. "Who are you?"<br>**"I am called Ryuu."** The blackness swirled, until all around her was gray, and the blackness took on a humanoid shape. Before her stood a man with black hair, glowing red eyes and tan skin. He had unusually sharp canines, and he grinned at her in a predatory fashion. **"And you child, have felt the harsh sting of betrayal. How does it feel?"**  
>Everything came rushing back to her. The massacre, Sasuke, Itachi's hand in it all. "I don't understand." She whispered.<br>The man sighed and rolled his eyes. **"Think about it girl. You picked apart his very mind, you know him better than he knows himself."**  
>"I thought I did." She muttered darkly.<br>There was a heavy sigh from the other figure, and she looked up to see his form change back into the black mass. **"No one changes _that_** **drastically."** He grumbled, the black mass spreading again. **"He is obviously lying to you. About what, I don't know. You will get the opportunity to ask at some point, methinks."**  
>"What are you?" She whispered fearfully, watching the black mass engulf everything once more.<br>**"I am a shadow on the wall, a whisper in the dark of night. I am your darkest nightmares, and brightest dreams. I am power given consciousness. I am Ryuu, the Dragon Spirit."  
><strong>"Where am I?" She asked, frowning at the Spirit. "Am I dead? Sasuke!"  
>There was a snort from the dark mass. <strong>"You're not dead. This is a section of your mind that belongs to me."<strong> There was a pause. **"Wake up now. Before you lose your chance."**

Tsukiko's eyes fluttered open, just as she heard Sasuke yell and charge after Itachi. Struggling to her feet, she looked up and saw them go over a building. Coughing, she followed as quickly as she could. She stumbled, falling to her knees and leaning heavily against the building, her mind still reeling from the genjutsu that Itachi had used on her. She heard Sasuke fall, and looked up weakly, her eyes locking with Itachi's. Her heart thumped painfully in her chest when she saw the tears streaming down his cheeks.  
>"Itachi?" He turned away from her. She felt the darkness in her mind shift, and her body was flooded with a strange and burning power. "Don't turn away from me!" She screamed, her telepathic powers sending psychic waves out and causing Itachi to stumble and fall to his knees. "I demand to know what is going on! The Itachi I knew would never hurt Sasuke! He was gentle! He cared for everyone!"<br>Itachi glanced towards her, his face twisted in pain as wave after wave of psychic rage rolled off Tsukiko. "My reasons are my own." He managed to get out through clenched teeth. "I only wanted to test my capabilities-"  
><strong>"STOP LYING TO ME!"<strong> Her voice took on a demonic tone, her eyes flashing red as she stalked towards him. "Why are you shutting me out? Don't I matter?" She restrained herself, her promise to him and Shisui to respect their privacy being the only thing keeping her from taking the answers from his mind.  
>Itachi struggled to his feet, his face becoming more and more focused, the pain still etched on his features. "No." He ground out. "You never mattered."<br>Tsukiko's eyes grew wide, his words cutting her deeply, and yet she could hear that voice in her head, laughing at his words. _**"Lies, all lies dear**** girl."**_  
>"You're still lying to me." She said softly, hanging her head. "Not even the greatest actor in the world could fake the love I saw in your eyes when you looked at Sasuke." The psychic attacks faded, leaving a faint buzz in the air from the energy and chakra that had been flowing through it mere moments before.<br>Itachi seemed to deflate slightly, hanging his head, his hair hiding his eyes. "I had no choice." He said, barely above a whisper. "It was the only way to keep him safe."  
>Tsukiko was now standing a few short steps from Itachi, and she saw the tears fall from his chin. Her heart clenched. She had never seen him cry, and this proved that there was something more to this, something he couldn't share. She bowed her own head, allowing a lone tear to trail down her cheek. "I see." Turning away from him, she clenched her fists tightly, forcing her voice to become cold. "Then leave. Leave and never return."<br>Tsukiko felt a hand close around one of her fists, Itachi's breath brushing her ear as one arm wrapped itself around her waist. "I'm so sorry." He whispered softly into her ear. "Please keep him safe."  
>She nodded her head. "I promise."<br>She could feel his lips curl into a soft smile against her ear. "Thank you." Her body relaxed of its own accord, her hand opening to curl her fingers into his. He pressed something into her open hand, his arm tightening affectionately around her waist. "I love you."  
>Tsukiko's eyes grew wide, but before she could react, a sharp pain spread from the base of her skull, and her vision immediately became dark. The last thing she could remember, was falling, and strong arms catching her.<p> 


	7. Nightmare Tsukiko

Tsukiko stepped back into the village, and glanced around. It had changed rather drastically. There were buildings in ruins and people were running around, madness, but controlled. The Village was in the process of rebuilding, but it seemed the crisis she was called back for was dealt with. It had taken her longer to return, since she had to extract herself from her mission. Arriving at the Hokage Mansion, she was greeted with an exuberant Naruto, who was excitedly relating all kinds of things to her. Sasuke seemed more sullen than usual, and when she caught his eye, she narrowed her eyes. The message was clear. They would be talking later.

Three strange shinobi filed past her, one of them looking exhausted. The adult seemed to be taken aback when he saw her, and expression like someone seeing a ghost.

"Ryuu..." he murmured as he passed her.|

Her eyes narrowed dangerously as she watched them leave.

"Neh, Tsuki-nee, is something wrong?" Naruto questioned.

"No," she responded, turning to face them. "Nothing is wrong. Kakashi-senpai, I'd like to speak with you when you are next available."

"Hai, once we've spoken to Tsunade-sama, I'll meet you at the dumpling shop."

"Be on time, senpai."

* * *

><p>Even after she had introduced herself to the new Hokage and discussed a possible time off for a few days she was the first one at the dumpling store. She never stayed near them for long. They reminded her of Itachi, and the pain in her heart, though dull, would start again.<p>

"Ah! Sorry for being late!" Kakashi appeared, followed by the ninja from earlier in the day.

"Kakashi-senpai, I thought I told you to be on time?" Tsukiko asked, forcing a smile through the ache in her chest. "Could we go somewhere else please? I would like to discuss some things I've heard."

"Of course," Kakashi said. "Ah, this is Hideki. He and his students are new members of the Village."

Tsukiko turned to face him, studying his appearance closely, before bowing politely. "Welcome to Konoha, Hideki-san."

"Thank you...?" he bowed in response, his voice trailing off in question.

"Tsukiko."

Her eyes narrowed slightly. He had acted as if he recognised her earlier, but now seemed to be acting innocent. "What does he know?"

"An excellent question, child. Perhaps you should use the jutsu?"

Tsukiko shook her head slightly. She would not use that jutsu, unless there was no other choice. If the Hokage trusted these people enough to have them brought into the Village, then there was little need for her to use it. Besides, the only other person alive who knew about it, was the only one to have walked away from it. Itachi...

"We're just waiting on Asuma, Gai and Kurenai," Kakashi added.

"I see, so you're actually on time, I was just early?" Tsukiko said, raising an eyebrow.

"You know, the last time someone pointed that out, Itachi appeared."

Tsukiko froze, her face barely remaining impassive, the slightest hint of distress slipping by. "Oh?"

Kakashi, sensing he had made an error, watched her cautiously before continuing. "He and another S-Class criminal, Kisame Hoshigaki, were in the village not long ago. They were after Naruto it would seem. Luckily, Jiraiya-sama was able to chase them off."

Tsukiko tried to calm herself. She had told him to never return, but she still longed to see him. If she had been here...would anything have changed?

"I see."

"Ah, Kakashi, you're early!" Kurenai appeared, followed by the other two Jounin.

"Yes, now lets move along before anymore S-Class criminals choose to appear," Tsukiko snapped, stalking away from the dumpling store.

"Ah! Tsukiko, when did you get back?" Kurenai hurried to catch up with the younger kunoichi.

"Just today," Tsukiko responded, as Kakashi and the other three shinobi took the lead. "I heard about the Third Hokage, and the presence of S-Class missing nins."

"Ah, I see," Kurenai said softly. "How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine," Tsukiko said firmly.

"I mean, have they found you?"

Tsukiko paused, her eyes locking on Hideki, who she realised was listening in. "No, but I found one. He had just killed a young boy, maybe a little older than Naruto. I disposed of him before he could alert his comrades to my presence, and not long ago I received the call back to Konoha."

"Orochimaru tricked the Hidden Sand into attacking. He seemed to have targeted the Hokage, but ignored N-the jinchuuriki," Kurenai caught herself, her own eyes flickering to Hideki.

"That's unusual. I heard rumors that he was part of an organisation of criminals. From what little I could gather on it, it sounds as if he and one of the other members had an altercation."

"Do you know what it was about, Tsukiko?" Kurenai frowned.

"I think he wanted something from the other shinobi, but it wasn't well received," Tsukiko shrugged. "Mind you, the information is based of rumors I've heard while exploring the Hidden Rain. I don't know for sure what is truth."

Kakashi fell in step beside her, and leaned to whisper into her ear. "Orochimaru targeted Sasuke. He has a curse seal on his neck that pulses with dark chakra. I want you to look at it after this."

"Hai."

* * *

><p>The group stopped at the ramen bar, and began to eat together, talking and catching up. Tsukiko's initial misgivings about "Hideki" faded, as she found him to be a surprisingly agreeable man. They stood outside the ramen bar, chatting when two young shinobi walked by.<p>

"Aiyanna? Shouldn't you be resting?" Hideki turned to face the young girl.

She was cute, very young, maybe a year older than Naruto at the most, with curly brown hair that stopped just past her lower back. Her skin was a dusky tan, that made her violet eyes stand out brightly. She had a round, innocent face, but her eyes... Tsukiko saw the eyes of someone significantly older.

She smiled warmly. "I wanted some fresh air! That, and Neji-san offered to show me around. IT would be rude to refuse an offer like that."

Tsukiko felt her heart clench as she looked at the girl, standing beside the boy she understood to be Neji. She saw parallels. The stoic boy, the innocent girl with old eyes... She prayed the similarities would stop there, but felt that ache in her heart again. She stepped away abruptly, and looked away.

"Ahaha! So Neji is filled with the Springtime of Youthful spirit after all!" Gai cheered loudly.

"There is a difference between friendliness and flirting, Gai," Kakashi sighed, whipping out his book.

Neji managed to make eye contact with Tsukiko and approached, as Hideki stepped closer to his pupil and spoke in urgent hushed tones with her.

"You are Tsukiko-san, correct?" he asked stiffly, an air of politeness emanating from him.

"Hmm, you must be from the Hyuuga clan," Tsukiko responded, fixing her impassive mask back in place as she turned to face him.

"Branch house, not the main family."

"I don't see much difference. You carry yourself with more dignity than those of the main family."

Neji seemed to be taken aback by Tsukiko's candid manner of speaking. "I...are you well? You looked very pale before."

Tsukiko waved him off. "I'm fine, just tired. I have only just returned from a mission, and I'm looking forward to resting before tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?"

"I have been asked by the Hokage to evaluate the fighting skills of the two newest ninjas. She plans to have them assigned to me, with their sensei as the fourth member of the team," Tsukiko glanced up at the moon. "I haven't had a team in...years..."

"You would be dead."

The two of them looked up abruptly, looking over at the young Kunoichi and her sensei.

Emotions flickered over the girl's face, and Tsukiko recognised the hopelessness on that girl's face.

"Yes, I would be dead," she responded hotly. "But he would be alive, and everything would have been alright!"

She turned on her heel and ran off, tears slipping from her eyes.

"Aiyanna!" Hideki reached for the girl, but Tsukiko caught him.

"Who is...he?" she questioned softly, her eyes distant.

Aiyanna sprinted home, and collapsed onto her bed, the door to her apartment slammed shut. She tried to sleep, but visions of him kept playing in her mind, and at some point she found herself in Aki's room, the two team mates crying together over their lost friend. Her nightmares were brushed aside, by an almost tender touch.

"Rest, I am here."

The voice was soft, almost motherly.

"Who are you?" Aiyanna questioned, looking around the serene landscape. She could hear her friends calling her.

The voice didn't respond, but Aiyanna was suddenly aware that there was someone in the room that wasn't Aki. Her eyes snapped open and she sat up swiftly, spotting someone leaning on the doorframe.

"Sorry, did I wake you?"

Aiyanna recognized the voice. "You're that ninja that was with Hideki-sensei..."

"Mm," came the soft response. "My name is Tsukiko. Care to talk about what has the two of you in fits?"

"Why does a random ninja care?"

A small smile tugged at the stoic kunoichi's lips. "I will be on your team if you perform satisfactorily in the morning."

"Oh..." Aiyanna blinked. Satisfactorily? What?

"And..." Tsukiko glanced out a window on her left. "I know what it is to lose someone."

"Ikutski," Aiyanna said softly. "He was like a brother to us. It feels like..."

"Like you've lost a part of yourself?"

"Yes!" Aiyanna breathed.

"I lost someone like that too," Tsukiko said softly, still not looking at the girl. "Shisui Uchiha. He was my mentor, and a dear friend."

"If you don't mind," Aiyanna said softly, coming to stand near the older kunoichi. "How did he..."

"They say it was suicide."

"But?"

"He was always so happy, and I knew he harbored no dark thoughts. We were always talking."

"Do you know who really killed him then?"

"The rumor is, it was the same person... who slaughtered his clan and family," Tsukiko's eyes filled with pain.

Aiyanna looked away. "Itachi Uchiha?"

There was a sharp intake of breath, and when Aiyanna looked at the older girl, the expression was so cold she stumbled back a little.

"So they say," came the emotionless response.

Aiyanna was quiet. "I don't think he did it."

Tsukiko's face twisted into a humourless smirk. "No, he definitely slaughtered his clan," the smile fell away. "Everything else? I don't know. I don't believe he did."

"I'm sorry...Itachi, he...he was important wasn't he?"

Tsukiko didn't answer for a long time. "My dearest friend besides Shisui. His mother would always bring me things, and she seemed to love having me around."

"I bet you have some embarrassing stories about the Ice King then," Aiyanna grinned, nudging Tsukiko.

Tsukiko smiled. "Mm, but you have training in the morning. Be sure to get as much rest as you can. I've placed a genjutsu on both of you that should allow you to sleep better."

"So that just now...that was you?"

Tsukiko nodded. "Sleep. I'll see you in the morning."

* * *

><p>Morning arrived and Tsukiko stood near a headstone, staring down at the name.<p>

"A team, huh?" she said softly. "Let's be off then."

* * *

><p>"Tsuki-nee!" Naruto charged her, and dragged a young girl behind him. "This is Aki-chan!"<p>

She was the other girl, the younger one. She had short black hair in wild spikes, with a vivid orange stripe running through it. She had fair skin, with a pair of big, mossy green eyes. Her eyes also possessed more age than a girl her age should.

"The life of a shinobi creates adults out of children." She thought absently as the two ninja ran to her.

"Yo!" she greeted cheerfully. "Aiya-chan says you might be our new sensei!"

"Just teammate," Tsukiko responded calmly. "Depending on how you perform in the next few battles."

Her head tipped. "Depending on the outcome of the next few fights, there is a possibility of temporary team restructuring until the Hokage establishes a team that works."

Naruto's eyes lit up. "So I might end up being on your team!?"

"For a little while," Tsukiko responded, smiling fondly.

"Right," Hideki's voice carried over the field, drawing the attention of the shinobi gathered. "Today Aiyanna and Aki will be sparring with three opponents each, so that Tsukiko-san can see their strengths and weaknesses, to see where she would like to improve them and if she wants to take them on as her genin."

Sasuke frowned, throwing a look over at Tsukiko. She gave him a half smile, her expression sarcastically happy. He chuckled and shook his head, turning to talk to Aiyanna who was sitting next to him.

"Tsukiko-san? Did you want to choose the first fights?" Hideki questioned.

All the young ninjas looked up eagerly, hoping to catch her eye and be the first to fight. Aki was practically buzzing beside her.

"This one is excitable, and likely lacks patience," she quietly stored the information away for later, and gave a slight nod. "Shino Aburame?"

"If I remember right, his clan is Konoha's bug clan. I don't know anything about Aki or Aiyanna's abilities, but this should give me some further insight into Aki's powers first."

"Indeed."

"Here," a boy with bushy brown hair, easily the tallest of his age, stepped forward.

"You'll be fighting Aki," she said using her head to indicate the bouncy girl get into the middle of the field.

"Yay!" she cheered, charging into the field.

"I'm going to have to teach her to conserve her energy before missions and potential combat situations," Tsukiko internally sighed.

However, once she was in her fighting stance, there was a hard glint in her eye that Tsukiko picked up on immediately. "Good, she knows when to take an opponent seriously."

"The ones to take seriously, are the ones you know little to nothing about."

"So everyone?"

"Exactly."

"Fight!" Hideki called out.

The bugs immediately appeared from the boy's sleeves, shooting towards Aki who was obviously surprised as she leapt out of the path of the bugs, dodging the near constant swarm. Tsukiko was aware that Shino's teammate, Kiba, was cheering loudly, but kept her attention fixed on Aki. The girl was good at evasion, and Tsukiko could see she was fast. Before long, Shino had a wall of bugs that acted as an excellent attack/defense barrier that Aki seemed to have trouble with. This frustrated the young girl, who seemed to snap.

"Enough!" she growled, quickly following up with a number of quick seals. "Special Yamada Jutsu! Bird command!"

A loud cry was soon heard, and glancing up, Tsukiko noted that there were birds moving in a dark cloud for the bugs. Fixing her eyes on the girl again, she waited to see if she would take advantage of Shino's distraction. Instead, she stood there grinning as the birds swarmed the bugs, forcing Shino onto the defensive. Eventually, Aki seemed to realise she had an opening and she darted in, using the birds as cover.

"Aki!" she yelled, cocking her fist back. "PUNCH!"

She struck Shino, who barely managed to block the punch before he was sent flying back. He crashed, landing at Tsukiko's feet, looking stunned.

"Not bad Shino-kun," she said, helping the boy to his feet. "Keep your eyes on your opponent, your bugs will tell you what you need to know."

"Hai, Tsukiko-san."

"Aki wins this round!" Hideki called, looking proud. He shot Tsukiko a curious glance, obviously wondering what her opinion was.

"Take five, Aki-chan," Tsukiko called. "The next fight will be Aiyanna and Sakura."

"Ready to lose, Aiyanna-san?" Sakura said, grinning hugely as she threw Sasuke a cocky look.

As they prepared, Tsukiko noticed Aiyanna make eye contact with a few of the others and make gestures towards the two members of Kakashi's team. And then she made eye contact with Sasuke.

Whatever had been decided, Tsukiko narrowed her eyes.

"Okay Tsukiko-san!" she called cheerfully before turning to Sasuke and smiling cutely. "Sasuke-kun... Wish me luck?"

~"Wish me luck Itachi!"~

Tsukiko clenched her fists, and focused on observing the tactics being employed.

Sasuke seemed to be in on the ploy, and got to his feet. He walked over to Aiyanna and took her hand in his, giving a smug smirk.

"Good luck, Aiyanna," he winked at her, and she responded with a blush and a downcast glance.

The intended reaction was almost immediate.

"You're dead!" two girls snapped, jumping forward and attacking the other girl.

Before they could, Tsukiko stepped in, catching the fists of the two girls and deflecting them.

"The fight has not started," she snapped, a dark glare on her face.

"Ah! Sorry Tsukiko-san!" Aiyanna said, her eyes wide. "I was just really excited to start the fight.."

Tsukiko threw a look over her shoulder. She didn't like the tactics this girl was using, but she couldn't deny that it was an intelligent move.

"Begin," she said curtly, vanishing from the fighting field.

* * *

><p>The two girls charged Aiyanna again, shuriken and explosive kunai as Ino and Sakura worked as a cohesive unit.<p>

"It appears they are capable of setting aside differences and working well together."

"Kakashi implied the same for Sasuke and Naruto."

"Hn."

However, the teamwork fell apart as soon as the two girls started arguing over Sasuke again. Tsukiko was quickly getting frustrated. This wasn't a true test, as all it proved was that Aiyanna was able to irritate her opponents and turn them against each other. A good skill, but it said nothing about her combative abilities. Fast, agile and clever. But what sort of techniques did she command? Aki seemed to have command over birds, but Tsukiko suspected she could command a greater variety of creatures.

Aiyanna was obviously bored, and Tsukiko sighed internally when Aiyanna didn't take advantage of her opponents' distraction like Aki. Instead, the brunnette wandered over to Sasuke and Naruto and discussed something with them.

"Don't turn your back on them, you overconfident child," Tsukiko growled internally, rubbing her forehead.

Suddenly, Aiyanna was cuddled up beside Sasuke and was trying to get the two arguing girls' attention.

"She's making them make fools of themselves."

"I should stop this," Tsukiko was about to, when the girls, finally taking note of Aiyanna, launched themselves at her.

Aiyanna vanished, swiftly appearing behind the two girls.

"You missed a spot," she taunted.

The two girls screamed furiously and cocked their fists back to hit Aiyanna. Instead, the girl grabbed them both by their hair and knocked them out cold with a swift strike of their heads against each other.

They crumpled to the ground at the girl's feet, and she grinned triumphantly.

There was silence. The students simply dumbstruck at how easily Aiyanna had beaten those two, the teachers...they could sense Tsukiko's displeasure and were very uncomfortable at that moment.

"Really Aiya-chan?" Aki called, drawing Tsukiko's attention. "You said nothing too bad!"

She laughed. "Yeah, but this was just a little tai-jutsu. And maybe some dirty fighting..."

"You're not the one standing next to Nightmare Tsukiko," Hideki grumbled, and Aki chuckled.

"Geez Aiya-chan!"

"Well," Kakashi said lightly. "Since Aiyanna has already defeated two opponents-"

"No."

Everyone's eyes locked on Tsukiko.

"Aiyanna, your next opponent is Shikamaru. The Nara clan are far less likely to fall for such juvenile tricks."

"Uh...um, ok..." Aiyanna seemed to sense the frosty tone and realised she'd made a misstep somewhere.

Shikamaru stood and moved over to the fighting space, the two unconscious girl's removed.

"Aw man!" Aki grumbled. "Aiya-chan got to fight two people, and two fights in a row."

"You'll get your chance," Tsukiko said absently, already analysing the way Shikamaru and Aiyanna were interacting, testing each other out before she raised her hand. "Begin!"

Shikamaru immediately threw shuriken at the brunnette girl, which she quickly moved to dodge. As Tsukiko had suspected, Shikamaru had anticipated this reaction, and was preparing another attack, launching more and more shuriken at the girl, who was stuck on the defensive.

Aiyanna's face screwed up in frustration, and eventually she yelled out, "freakin' genius!"

Shikamaru paused, an eyebrow cocked in question and shuriken at the ready.

"Another opening ignored."

"Did I say that last part out loud?"

"Yup."

"Huh..." using her speed and finally taking advantage of her opponent's distraction, Aiyanna kicked Shikamaru hard in the gut, launching him a few feet back.

"Damn," Shikamaru coughed. "You kick hard!"

She beamed and bowed, "Thanks!"

From her bent position, she darted forward again.

~"Damn, you hit hard!"

Laughing eyes, a small trickle of blood from a split lip.

"Ah! Shisui-san!"

He waved her off. "I'm fine. I've handled worse than a punch to the face before. Isn't that right, Ita-kun?"

Another chuckle, Tsukiko turned...~

She shook herself out of her reverie, and focused on the fight before her again. This was much better, and she could see excellent technique in both combatants, but again she got the sense that Aiyanna wasn't giving this her all. She was underestimating her opponents.

Shikamaru finally managed to catch Aiyanna off guard, having lured her into the shade, where his jutsus were most powerful.

"What the heck!?" she cried out, her body no longer hers to command.

"This is my special jutsu, Shadow Possesion Jutsu," Shikamaru explained, making Aiyanna do a weird pose.

She giggled. "This is so weird!"

"This fight is over," Tsukiko said, checking Aiyanna's mind briefly to discern if she was going to try anything else. "That's one win, one loss so far."

"Aw..." Aiyanna pouted. "And I was so sure I was going to win!"

"That's the problem," Tsukiko responded, jerking her head towards the field, indicating Aki was next. "You're too cocky, so you don't take your opponents seriously. Why do you think I pitted you against someone like Shikamaru?"

"Because you thought the first fight was stupid?"

"Because you clearly haven't battled a ninja who you weren't able to throw off. Aki," Tsukiko looked over at the other girl. "Your next opponent is Tenten."

* * *

><p>Aiyanna didn't quite understand why Tsukiko was in such a foul mood. She had been kind and gentle last night, and now she seemed to be short tempered with everyone. But she was right. The fight against Sakura and Ino had been easy, because she knew exactly how to get under their skin, to make them angry and easier to beat. Shikamaru wasn't as easy. In fact, she had no idea what would get under that boy's skin, since he was so... lazy.<p>

Aiyanna watched the fight between Aki and Tenten, which consisted mostly of Aki avoiding a barrage of weapons.

"Yo!"

Aiyanna looked up and saw Naruto flop next to her.

"Hey Naruto, what can you tell me about Tsukiko-san?"

"Tsuki-nee? Hmm," Naruto seemed to be deep in thought. "I know she used to be on a team with some really strong ninja, and is really strong. She's really nice, even though people call her "Nightmare Tsukiko" or something..."

"Why? I mean, Copycat Kakashi is easy to figure out, but Nightmare Tsukiko?"

"Its her jutsu," Aiyanna looked around and saw Sasuke come sit on her other side. "She uses a powerful genjutsu, or something like it to twist the thoughts in your mind. Nightmares supposedly become almost real. I've only ever experienced her using its counterpart, turning nightmares into dreams."

"She was so nice last night, but for some reason..." Aiyanna looked over at the kunoichi, her long blonde braided hair reaching her ankles. "She seems so cold today."

"That's just her ninja face," Naruto said, waving it off. "She always acts really stern, especially if she thinks you're doing something wrong."

Sasuke nodded in agreement. "And Tsunade-sama is making her your team captain."

"Great," Aiyanna groaned. "She'll probably want to fight us after all this so she can test us better."

"That would be awesome," Naruto chuckled. "I've never seen Tsuki-nee fight."

* * *

><p>The fight was proving that Aki was fast. She easily evaded Tenten's attacks, irritating the other girl before long. Aki charged in, yelling a cheerful "peekaboo" that startled Tenten, granting Aki the smallest of openings. But unlike the previous fights, Aki took advantage of it, roundhouse kicking Tenten across the field. Tenten hit a tree with a grunt, and while she was stunned, Aki quickly went through a number of hand seals.<p>

"Yamada Summoning Jutsu! Ursa Major!"

The cute girl's features seemed to twist into a feral snarl as two large bears appeared by her side, both growling menacingly before charging.

Tsukiko moved in quickly. She landed before Tenten, and placing two fingers against her temple, she focused her mental energies and blasted both bears with a powerful Mind Blast that caused the two creatures to stumble and fall, howling.

"Enough!" Aiyanna cried, jumping to her feet. "Give me back Aki!"

Aki's eyes snapped closed, and she dropped to her knees. Tsukiko reached out with her mind, and subdued the wild rage that had possessed the girl's thoughts. Aki gasped, and dismissed the mewling bears. Tsukiko straightened up, and held a hand out to Tenten.

"Are you alright?"

"H-hai..." she answered, her eyes wide and scared.

Aki ran over to them, and apologized profusely. "I'm so, so sorry Tenten-san!"

Tenten shook her head. "Its alright, Tsukiko-san was able to stop them, so no harm done," she smiled.

"Aki wins this round," Tsukiko said calmly. "You did much better this time. However..."

"I lost control..." Aki said, bowing her head. "I...I don't want to keep doing that."

Tsukiko tipped her head to the side. "Rest. You still have more fights after Aiyanna does her next fight."

"Hai," Aki wandered over to where Aiyanna was. Aiyanna quickly pulled the other girl into a hug and whispered encouraging words into her ear.

"Tsukiko-san?"

"Hmm?"

Tenten wobbled slightly as she tried to step away from the tree. "Did she really lose control?"

"Hmm," she responded, noncommittal. "Rest up, Gai-senpai will have you training early tomorrow."

Tenten groaned as she wobbled over to her team.

"I want to test more than her taijutsu skills, but Aiyanna won't use ninjutsu against a sharingan. Perhaps I'll have to place her against someone else..." Tsukiko's eyes roamed over the various people, and her eyes landed on Neji.

Despite having only recently met, she had recognized a similar connection between the two she had once shared with Itachi. But she noticed the cracks were already appearing.

~"Branch house, not the main family."~

"It is difficult to compare to an Uchiha when you're never given a chance to shine..." she thought absently. "The next fight will be Aiyanna against Neji."

Neji seemed surprised, throwing her a startled look. He noticed the look in her eye and frowned. While Aiyanna stepped out, he approached her.

"Why me?"

"To prove you are more than just a branch family member," she responded. "And before you say anything, I didn't choose Hinata, because I know Aiyanna would be able to exploit any weaknesses she has. You are like Shikamaru, you won't let her under your skin."

His eyes flickered off to the side.

"It may be too late for that, Ki."

"Hmm, she may not know it, but she already has an advantage over him."

Tsukiko put a hand on his shoulder. "You are strong. From what I've heard, you are the strongest, even stronger than the Main Branch of the family. But you're limiting yourself. Find a goal, work towards it. Then nothing will be impossible."

Neji looked up into her hazel eyes. "Hai."

She smiled. "And one day, perhaps you can test your strength against me."

She knew he respected her, knew he considered her strength incredible. She had once been part of a team that had succeeded every mission. She had been a nobody, and had become great. Without a sharingan or a byakugan. The determination in his eyes proved that he wished to fight her, more than anything else. To fight her, would be to him the equivalent of proving his worth to the whole village.

* * *

><p>He stepped out into the field, opposite Aiyanna. She smiled, but he remained stoic. Confusion flitted across her face, and Tsukiko folded her arms.<p>

How would Aiyanna combat an opponent like Neji? He was focused, and he possessed a kekkei genkai. "She'll have to use ninjutsu in order to win here."

"Begin!"

Neji started by immediately spinning quickly, creating a barrier of chakra, that if Aiyanna had touched, would have thrown her and done some damage. But she flipped away, and avoided Neji's attacks as he come out of the rotation. She seemed to understand that a direct attack from Neji would be bad, and so their fight seemed to turn into an elaborate dance.

Tsukiko felt that ache return, as Shisui had often pointed out when Itachi and she sparred, it looked as if they were dancing. She shook her head, and focused again, noting that evasion was something Aiyanna seemed to excel at.

"If she was capable of long range attacks, this would be good."

Neji was beginning to get frustrated, and Tsukiko stumbled back as for a brief moment when Neji activated his byakugan, she saw Itachi. She shook her head, become irritated with herself. She needed to hit something, but now wasn't the time.

Aiyanna frowned, as he struck a point on her shoulder. She ducked under his arm again, and making a twisting motion with her hands, she manipulated the grass around his feet. The grass swiftly grew longer, climbing up and twisting around his body, stopping him in his tracks.

Aiyanna's normally violet eyes had turned a grassy green, and Tsukiko allowed a small smirk.

"So that's her ability...elements..."

"Enough, you were both equally matched, but it seems Aiyanna was the one to come out the victor here," Tsukiko stepped forward. Aiyanna allowed the grass to fall away, and her eyes resumed their natural color. Tsukiko put a hand on Neji's shoulder. "You fought well."

"Thanks for the great fight, Neji-kun!" Aiyanna smiled.

Neji turned away sharply, leaving Aiyanna confused.

"Did I...do something...wrong?"

"Perhaps you should be more careful about how you act. Your tactic in the first fight was cruel, and you've done more than enrage two girls," Tsukiko motioned back to the crowd. "Neji and Sasuke are both likely to be confused as to your intentions now."

Tsukiko returned to her spot. "The next fight will be Kiba and Aki. There will be one fight after an hour break."

Everyone immediately perked. "Uh, Tsukiko-san...I thought they would each have three fights..." Hideki said slowly.

"Aye. But I've decided I want to see their team work. After this fight and the hour break, they will be allowed to choose their next opponent."

* * *

><p>The fight between Kiba and Aki was much like Aiyanna's and Neji's. Similar fighting styles meant that they often countered and blocked each other's attacks. Aki summoned a number of cats that she used to help her fight, and Kiba's teamwork with Akamaru meant that he was able to easily keep up. After nearly half an hour, they both began to tire, and Tsukiko called for a stop.<p>

"That will be a tie. The two of you can stop."

"Eh! But I was just about to win!" they shouted in unison.

Tsukiko smiled. "Its lunch time. And Aki, save your strength. You and Aiyanna will return here in an hour and then you may announce who you've decided to fight."

* * *

><p>"So Aiya-chan, who should we pick?" Aki asked between mouthfuls. All the genin were gathered in one spot, the two unconscious girls finally waking to sit sullenly on their own.<p>

"Well, its a fight to test teamwork, right?" Aiyanna said. "Then that means we should be able to pick more than one person."

"Sasuke-kun and Naruto-kun? We haven't fought them yet..."

"Hmm," Aiyanna's eyes flickered to Tsukiko, who was sitting crosslegged in front of Naruto. "I was thinking...what if we picked a jonin?"

Aki choked on her noodles, coughing slightly. "Say what now?"

Aiyanna shrugged. "Not two, obviously, but...a jonin..."

Aki looked between Aiyanna and Tsukiko and then looked around at all the other jounin. "They're all probably very strong..."

"I know, but if we won..." Aiyanna looked down. "Maybe then Tsukiko-san won't decide to not make us part of her team."

"Eh!? She wasn't going to take us?!" Aki cried.

"Shh! I just...I don't think she likes us much..." Aiyanna frantically tried to shut her friend up.

"Well then we'll make her like us!" Aki jumped to her feet, an eggroll hanging from her mouth. "Tsukiko-san! We choose you as our next opponent!"

Everyone went silent, and stared at Aki with surprised looks. Tsukiko continued to eat calmly.

"Hey! Did you hear me! We choose you!"

"You can't just challenge Tsukiko-san like that," Sakura said with a frown. "She's on a whole nother level from us genin. She doesn't accept challenges from genin."

"She said we could choose anyone!" Aki declared, still glaring at the silent woman.

"Hmm, I did didn't I?" Tsukiko responded calmly. "But Sakura-chan is right. Are you quite sure its me you wish to fight?"

"Yes! If we beat you, you'll have no choice but to take us as your students!"

"But if you beat me, wouldn't that mean you are better than me, ergo have no need for a sensei?"

"Huh?"

Aiyanna sighed. "She said that if we beat her, we're better than here, and we should be jonin."

"That's better! If we win, we're jonin!"

"And if you lose?" Tsukiko's voice was dangerously low, an eyebrow raised in challenge.

"Then we'll never challenge you again, and if you decide not to be our sensei, we'll have to find someone else," Aki responded firmly, finally removing the egg roll.

Tsukiko smirked, a dark glint in her eye. "I accept."

* * *

><p>So...I've been away for...a long time actually... but here :D<p>

Anyway, the newbies Aiyanna, Aki and Hideki originally belonged to a friend of mine, but she gave me permission to adopt them, so I've done a little remodeling of them... Also, it was kinda fun writing this chapter, its definitely the longest I have done so far  
>So, disclaimer is down here, but I don't own Naruto or any of its characters, and I adopted Aki, Aiyanna and Hideki and Tsukiko and "Ryuu" belong to me<br>Let me know about any spelling/grammer errors I missed because I know that stuff annoys me, I don't know about the rest of you  
>Thanks for reading yalls~<p> 


	8. So You think you can win?

Right, so this one is much shorter than the last, but I was hitting a wall here  
>I also had a few thoughts, and decided to change the direction the story is taking, but not tooo much (which is why i don't need to rewrite the whole thing)<br>Let me know how I'm doing, and what yall think and all that  
>Much appreciated, I don't own Naruto or any of the Naruto Characters, I own Tsukiko and Ryuu and I adopted ownership of Aki, Aiyanna and Hideki<br>Anyway, on with the story~

* * *

><p>Word spread like wildfire that a genin had challenged the Nightmare Tsukiko, and before long a crowd had formed. Aiyanna and Aki prepared to step out into the field, the other genin gathered around them.<p>

"This is crazy," Chouji muttered. "Even other jounin are weary about challenging her..."

"Yeah, even Guy-sensei thinks twice about challenging her!" Tenten added nervously. "And she always beats him before he has a chance to do more than blink!"

Aiyanna sighed. "Great, this is sounding like a good idea more and more by the minute."

"I won't chicken out," Aki sniffed. "We're not weak."

"She could end the fight before it even starts," Sasuke pointed out. "She's jounin, and Kakashi-sensei admitted he doesn't know how strong she really is."

Aiyanna groaned. "I get it! Aki got us into a dumb situation."

"You girls ready?" Hideki called. "You still have a chance to change your minds."

Aiyanna was about to open her mouth, when Aki snapped that she wasn't going to chicken out.

Aiyanna sighed and followed her irate teammate towards the center of the field, catching Aki's arm. "Remember, if we even want to stand a chance, we need to work as a team."

"Tag?"

"It could work," Aiyanna agreed. "I'll be it, you try find an opening."

"No, I'll be it," Aki said, shaking her head. "My techniques are better for distractions, and you're faster than me. You'd be able to take advantage of the openings."

Aiyanna shook her head. "Remember the fight with Tenten? She took down those bears easily. My jutsus don't rely on things like that."

"What do you mean?"

"I think she attacked their minds directly," Aiyanna said as they soon reached the middle. "Remember, she's called "Nightmare Tsukiko" for a reason. We want to keep at a distance if possible."

Aki nodded understanding. "Hai!"

"Ready?" Hideki called.

The girls looked over at their opponent, standing serenely a distance from them, her arms folded over her chest, golden hair braided and draped over her shoulder. She was barefoot, wearing a black singlet shirt and shorts, her forehead protector wrapped around her hips. She had no evidence of weapons on her, no hints as to her prefered fighting style.

Aiyanna was sure this would be a difficult fight. She and Aki gave a curt nod, and the order rang over the already tense atmosphere. Everyone was keen to see Tsukiko fight, and it rankled Aiyanna as she noticed a betting table being put up, everyone betting against the two of them, a few deciding to bet on the rookies.

"Tch."

* * *

><p>Tsukiko admired their spirit. Despite the overwhelming fact that they were outclassed, they still devised a plan that she was certain would be effective against most others. But she wasn't like other shinobi.<p>

The call for the fight rang, and she waited to see if they would move. She unleashed a fraction of her aura, something most referred to as "killer intent." It was something that could paralyze even the most experienced shinobi, when met with someone whose aura rivalled their own. She noticed the fire in Aki's eyes had faded slightly, a slight shaking appearing in both girls as they sensed it. And she wasn't even really trying yet. She snorted, and thought perhaps she should finish it quickly when Aiyanna shook herself and pinched Aki. The two girls then launched themselves forward, moving swiftly for Tsukiko, trying to distract her by weaving across each other's path as they advanced.

The jounin quickly grounded herself, making her stance firm and immovable, meeting them head on. Aki threw a roundhouse kick, that Tsukiko blocked with her forearm as Aiyanna went in low, the two girls perfectly in sync with one another. Tsukiko used Aki's momentum to launch herself over the girl, dodging Aiyanna's low sweeping kick. The force of Tsukiko jumping, pushed Aki's leg down, and caused the two genin to collide rather painfully. A cheer went up through the older shinobi, who all had to agree, that despite the fact it failed, the attack was nearly perfectly executed. Tsukiko quickly recovered and swiftly launched a reverse roundhouse that threw Aki half way across the field before the girl righted herself. Aiyanna flipped away from the jounin, trying to put some distance between them. She then did a quick series of hand signs, that Tsukiko watched with silent eyes.

"Fire Manipulation: Burning Fists!" Aiyanna's fists caught fire and she charged forward.

Tsukiko braced herself, observing Aki's movements with her mental awareness, as she prepared to trade blows with Aiyanna.

The girl threw a wild haymaker, followed by several hooks and uppercuts, that Tsukiko seemed to dance around. When Aiyanna swung, Tsukiko just wasn't there anymore.

Tsukiko did a few quick seals, and caught Aiyanna's fist, the flames dispelled instantly. The girl blinked in surprise, and Tsukiko quickly used Aiyanna's momentum to direct her into Aki's path as the girl came in for fast spinning heel kick that caught Aiyanna's shoulder instead of Tsukiko's. After a few minutes of Tsukiko defending, almost lazily in the view of surrounding jounin, the two girls were soon panting as Tsukiko stood watching them.

"Damnit," Aki growled, before performing a number of seals. "Special Yamada Jutsu! Bird Command!"

Immediately birds began to swoop in, swirling around Tsukiko who simply placed two fingers against her temple. Aiyanna's eyes grew wide. Tsukiko would not be beaten easily.

"Mind Barrage," Tsukiko intoned calmly, and instantly the birds began falling out of the sky, squawking pathetically.

Both girls winced as they felt faint traces of the jutsu wash over them as a sharp headache and fell back further.

"Stay out range for that jutsu!" Aiyanna called to her teammate.

Tsukiko allowed the edges of her lips to pull up slightly. They were definitely within rights to be cocky, but cockiness wasn't something they could afford as a shinobi.

She crouched and leapt forward, deciding to see how they handled genjutsu. The genjutsu cast, both girls appeared dazed, and Tsukiko prepared to take them both down when Aiyanna blinked. Aiyanna managed to react in time by blocking Tsukiko's kick, using the jutsu that she had used against Neji, causing the grass to come up and wrap around Tsukiko's leg. Aiyanna quickly freed Aki from the genjutsu and the two prepared to attack Tsukiko again. Using her chakra, Tsukiko cut the grass away and used a substitution to swap out with Aki who received a punch to the gut while Aiyanna got Aki's knee in her own gut. The two girls jumped apart and turned to face Tsukiko who was crouched a small distance away.

"I'm tired of playing around now," she droned as she straightened up. "I've learned what needed from this."

"Are you...forfeiting?" Aki asked suspiciously.

"No," Tsukiko tipped her head. "Ending this. Lesson number one girls. There is always..." a sudden stifling killer intent emitted from Tsukiko, bring both girls to their knees in fear. "Someone better."

Tsukiko vanished from sight as she moved swiftly, using quick taijutsu to attack the frightened girls, who barely managed to hold her off, before Tsukiko defeated them both. A shadow clone held Aki, pinned to the ground, a fist cocked back, and Tsukiko herself had Aiyanna in a hold.

"This fight is done," she said loud enough for the others to hear. The shadow clone dissipated and Tsukiko released Aiyanna, the two girls staring at Tsukiko in surprise.

"We...lost?" Aki sid dumbly, staring at the older kunoichi. "That means...you won't train us?"

Tsukiko allowed a small smile. "The reason I accepted was to see your teamwork. The two of you passed. I defeated you to remind you, there is always someone better, so you could be humbled."

Aki frowned, but Aiyanna was the one who spoke. "We have become a little cocky...haven't we, Hideki-sensei."

Hideki and the rest had approached, while the other chuunin and jounin not involved went off. "Just a little," he laughed.

Tsukiko smiled warmly. "I must go see Lady Tsunade. Hideki-san will let you know what is decided tomorrow."

"Hai!" the two girls said in unison, as the older Shinobi turned and walked away.

Kakashi caught up with her, and the two walked away together.

* * *

><p>Aiyanna sat on the grass watching her new team leader walking away with Kakashi walking beside her.<p>

"Do you think...?" Aki asked, her voice trailing off speculatively.

Aiyanna threw a look at Aki. "I don't think so."

"But..."

"I think she likes someone else," Aiyanna said, shaking her head at her friend. "They look like they're just good friends."

"Hey Aki-chan, Aiyanna-chan," Naruto called as he bounded towards them. "Wanna head to Ichiraku's and get some ramen? After that fight you must be starving!"

"Wasn't much of a fight," Aki said with a sniff.

"You're right, it was a beat down," Kiba laughed as he threw an arm over Naruto's shoulder. "Kurenai-sensei and Kakashi-sensei were talking. Kakashi reckons she wasn't even warming up."

"You mean she wasn't taking us seriously!" Aki asked enraged.

"Aki calm down," Aiyanna laughed.

"No way! Alright!" Aki was on her feet. "I propose a mission to show her she should take us more seriously!"

Naruto and Kiba grinned excitedly, the other genin looking interested.

"Yosh!" a boy in green spandex - Aiyanna recalled his name was Rock Lee - said with a fire in his eyes. "What is this mission! I shall give it 100%"

"Lee, you're injured and not allowed to do any real fighting," Tenten said with a heavy sigh.

"So what's the mission Aki-chan?" Sakura asked, pointedly ignoring Aiyanna.

There was a wicked glint in her eye. "Operation: Get Tsukiko-sensei and Kakashi-sensei to kiss, thus seeing under Kakashi-sensei's mask!"

The other genin looked a little concerned with the idea, but at the same time very tempted.

"We do want to see under his mask..." Kiba said slowly.

"She said she wanted to see what our teamwork was like," Aiyanna said, spreading her hands. "And while personally I think we shouldn't butt in, I think doing something like this might impress her. Unless she's really ticked off instead..."

"So how do you plan to pull this off?" Sasuke asked, looking curious.

"Tsukiko-sensei said that Shikamaru-kun is a genius right?" Aiyanna said with a glint in her eye, seeming to also get into the spirit of the moment.

The others nodded.

"Shikamaru's the only one who made Chuunin in the Chuunin Exams," Ino pointed out.

They all turned to Shikamaru.

"That ranks you higher than us," Aki was grinning from ear to ear. "And that means you call the shots!"

He sighed. "This is such a drag."

He crouched and put his hands into a sort of circle, his eyes closed and deep in thought.

"What's he doing?" Aki whispered to Chouji.

"He's busy planning out a strategy. How we can do this, and how it would be most successful," Chouji explained between munches.

After a few minutes, Shikamaru's eyes snapped open.

"Alright, here's the plan..."

* * *

><p>"I had a look at the curse seal," Tsukiko reached for chopsticks as she and Kakashi sat to eat some ramen. "I placed a secondary seal in place as a precaution."<p>

Kakashi nodded, doing the same. They had gotten take out, and were sitting in Kakashi's apartment.

"Will it hold?"

Tsukiko shrugged. "The main purpose of the secondary seal is to shut off his chakra, hopefully stopping that thing from taking over."

Kakashi pulled the mask down, and started eating. He noticed Tsukiko staring at him with an amused expression. "What?"

"You do realise the genin are plotting a little plot to get you to do that?"

"Yup," Kakashi grinned. "They've tried nearly everything."

Tsukiko laughed, and Kakashi's smile grew warmer.

"Senpai, what were your thoughts on the girls?"

Kakashi set his chopsticks aside. "They're definitely cocky, but they are talented, and their teamwork is better than most their age."

"Hmm," Tsukiko slurped up the last of the soup and set aside the ramen cup. "Talented, good teamwork and able to overcome their fears and work under pressure. They could be jounin in a year or two."

"You plan to put them into the Chuunin exams?"

"When it comes around again," Tsukiko stood and stretched her cramped legs.

She didn't see the slight look of appreciation in Kakashi's eye, and if she had been using her mind reading powers, she might have blushed at the direction his thoughts were going.

"Tsunade-sama and Guy-senpai have agreed to let me borrow Neji for the next mission," Tsukiko said, turning around to face him again.

Kakashi had pulled his mask over his nose again.

"What for?"

"He landed a few hits in his fight with Aiyanna, she shouldn't have been able to manipulate her chakra when she did, but she did," Tsukiko tipped her head, a thoughtful expression softening her normally harsh face. "That and she was able to break out of a genjutsu very easily."

It made her look closer to her eighteen years than she normally did.

"So why Neji, and not Hinata?"

Tsukiko gave him an odd look. "For one thing, we both know he has a better command of the byakugan than she does, and for another..." she trailed off. "He is more likely to work well in a team with those two. Hinata is far too timid."

"Ah."

A knock at the door got their attention. "Come in," Kakashi called, not bothering to get up.

The door opened and Sasuke stepped in. He looked confused to see Tsukiko there, but his expression quickly returned to neutral.

"Tsukiko-san, why are you here?" he asked, his tone barely hiding his curiosity.

"Kakashi-senpai and I were discussing missions that will be coming soon," Tsukiko answered with a shrug. She reached and picked up the empty ramen cups. "And we had food while we chatted."

"Need something Sasuke?" Kakashi questioned, an eyebrow cocked in question.

"Naruto has been getting on everyone's nerves, but I agree with him. When are we going on a mission?"

"Soon," Kakashi said lazily, pulling out his favourite book, Make-Out Paradise. Tsukiko gave the book a questioning look, but said nothing. "In fact, Tsukiko-san, what if Team 7 joined your team on your next mission."

Tsukiko paused and her eyes took a faraway quality. "_There's a large chance of running into __them__, but I might need the backup."_

"_**It wouldn't do to be caught unawares with just those children,"**_ Ryuu agreed silently.

"Hmm, sounds like an idea," she eventually responded. "I'll let Lady Tsunade know."


	9. Questions

**A/N: My apologies for the lateness of this upload. I have ended up getting distracted with a number of things, some of which include university, work and family, while others would be other fanfictions. With some luck, future uploads should not take a year to happen. Please enjoy**

* * *

><p>The next day, Aiyanna, Aki and the genin of Team 7 stood at the meeting point.<p>

"Where are Kakashi-sensei and Tsukiko-sensei?" Aki frowned.

"Kakashi-sensei is always late," Sakura groaned.

"I bet Tsuki-nee is looking for him," Naruto added.

Aiyanna huffed as Hideki approached the group. "Hideki-sensei? What are you doing here?"

"Tsukiko-san might be a little longer," he answered. "She's sorting out some things, and asked me to come by and explain the mission. I had hoped Kakashi-san would be here, but it appears I'm a little early."

"No, you're not," the members of Team 7 said in unison.

Hideki chuckled. "Well-"

"Sorry I'm late!" came Kakashi's voice, as he appeared at Hideki's side with an eye-smile. "I had to stop and help a lost child find his mother."

"DON'T LIE!" the three genin yelled at their sensei.

"Kakashi-san, I assume you've been briefed?" Hideki asked quickly.

"I have," he answered seriously. "I'll discuss the mission with my genin. Tsukiko should be along soon."

"Understood," Hideki said. "I'll speak with Aki and Aiyanna."

Kakashi nodded as the two girls were ushered a little away from Team 7.

"Sensei?" Aki frowned.

"This job is simple enough," Hideki explained. "Just investigating and taking down a simple bandit clan."

"Then why the secrecy?" Aiyanna said.

"Tsukiko-san disclosed some information that Kakashi-san knows as well," Hideki said. "Considering it is to do with..._them_, I felt you should both be aware of the possibility of the mission being derailed."

"Basically, _they_ might be involved, but we're going _towards_ them anyway?" Aiyanna asked incredulously.

Hideki was quiet for a while. "Tsukiko-san simply feels it would be best to go in eyes open. As she said, every mission runs the risk of risking one's life for a mission."

"Is that why she's not here yet? She's making sure everything is accounted for?" Aiyanna quierried.

"I believe so."

"TSUKI-NEE!" Naruto yelled. "Why is Neji with you!?"

The three turned to see Tsukiko approaching with Neji walking beside her. "Neji has been assigned to the team, temporarily in order to keep the four man squads."

"Then what is Bushy Brows Sensei's team going to do?" Naruto questioned.

"Training, I expect," Tsukiko answered lightly. "I assume everything is in order?"

"Ready when you are," Kakashi answered, his hands in his pockets as he leaned against a wall.

"Then let us not delay any longer," Tsukiko quipped.

Aki grinned, before waving goodbye to Hideki, then leaned in as the genin followed behind their senseis. "Mission Get Tsukiko-sensei Back: begin!"

"Yeah!" the other three whispered, while Neji and Sasuke sighed softly.

* * *

><p>The mission itself, was as simple as expected. Tsukiko hung back, preferring to allow her team to do the work, gaining experience, while she watched their backs. Kakashi took a more active role, but otherwise also preferred to let his team build experience through direct conflict.<p>

It was, as a result, finished rather quickly.

"We should head back to the village and report in," Kakashi said, as the bandits were carted off.

Tsukiko frowned, her arms folded. '_Too easy.'_

'_**You're right, stay on guard,'**_ Ryuu answered softly.

"The teams are tired," she answered. "There is an inn nearby that we could stop by. They can rest."

Kakashi glanced at her, and nodded. "Sounds like an idea."

Aiyanna noticed the look the two jonin shared. '_They think something is wrong.'_ She realised.

* * *

><p>Aiyanna was sitting in the hotspring, her arms folded over her chest as she tried to puzzle out her jounin-sensei. She seemed too hot-cold, and there was clearly history between her, Sasuke and Naruto. Considering the two couldn't be in the same room without bickering, she doubted she had trained them. Or maybe she had? Naruto considered her a big sister. Sasuke just seemed to see her as a powerful ninja, although there were times when he would slip up and call her sister as well. Maybe something there?<p>

"Aiya-chan, you're making the water cold," Aki whined, dunking Aiyanna's head under the water.

Aiyanna spluttered as she resurfaced and tackled Aki. "That was not cool, Aki!"

Sakura appeared to be fighting the urge to laugh, as she forced herself to roll her eyes at them.

Aki giggled and sighed as she leaned back in the hot water. "What's up? You looked like you were giving yourself an aneurysm over there."

"I'm trying to figure out Tsukiko-sensei," Aiyanna answered truthfully. "Hey Sakura-chan, how well do you know Tsukiko-sensei?"

Sakura shrugged. "I've heard _of_ her, but I think Sasuke-kun and Naruto know her best."

"How though?"

Sakura tipped her head in thought. "I don't know much about how she and Naruto know each other, but I had heard that Tsukiko-sensei used to be on a team with an Uchiha. That might be how she met Sasuke?"

"Oi, Sasuke!" a voice yelled, the girls turning their heads towards the wall separating the men's and women's baths.

It sounded as if a fight had broken out on the other side when Kakashi's voice could be heard, ordering them to 'knock it off' and the girls heard a soft sigh near them. They turned again to see Tsukiko with her head resting on her arms as she lay in the hot water. A dragon tattoo could be seen on her back, twisting around the symbol of their village.

"Wow, that's an impressive tattoo!" Aki commented, swimming over to Tsukiko.

"Hmm," came the sleepy response.

Aiyanna had an idea. "Sensei, tell us about your old team."

Tsukiko's eyes snapped open, and the air seemed to become tense. The girls swallowed thickly, and could hear that even the boys had gone deathly quiet.

'_Oops.'_


End file.
